Christmas Wishes
by Kavi Leighanna
Summary: 2006 Annual Christmas Story. Complete and utter Christmas fluff. Danny decides to up the ante in his quest to win Lindsay. DL.
1. Christmas Music

**Chapter 1 **– **December 1, 2006**

If there was one thing Lindsay Monroe loved it was the month of December. More specifically, the season of Christmas. It was common for her to be heard humming the carols during the season and she found herself just as happy when December 1st rolled around in New York City.

It wouldn't be her first Christmas away from home, nor would it be her first Christmas in the Big Apple. However, her familiarity around the lab didn't stop people from looking oddly at her as she all but skipped down the hall. She'd heard her first carol of December that morning and she'd been happy ever since.

"Someone's happy," Stella Bonasera commented as Lindsay entered the break room.

The younger detective shot Stella a grin. "I love December."

"That's a Christmas carol you're humming?"

"I heard my first one this morning. I'm a little excited about it."

Stella chuckled, stepping away from the counter where the coffee maker was situated to allow Lindsay to make a cup. "First one?"

"Usually I'm half way through November listening to carols. I still haven't gotten a chance to actually get myself a new CD though."

"A Christmas CD?"

"I left most of that type of stuff back in Montana. I worked through Christmas last year and didn't get myself a new one."

Stella shook her head. "That's so wrong."

Lindsay laughed. "Yeah, I know."

"Are you working again this year?"

"Shifts haven't come out for the season. I have no where to be at the moments. It'll probably be nice to work those days."

"You have to be kidding me! Its your second Christmas in New York, you have to do something."

"Stel, it really doesn't matter. There are people who have family to go visit and be with. The least I can do is make sure they don't have to work."

"This Christmas, Lindsay, is going to be different."

* * *

Danny liked to think he was an intuitive CSI. He knew that his Montana had spent Christmas of the previous year in the lab, working. He also noticed the distinct lack of Christmas spirit in her.

Until that morning.

She'd entered their office ten minutes after he'd arrived and it took him a few moments to identify the song she was humming. Christmas carols.

It made him feel better about the CD he had packed in his locker. He'd put it together half way through November after a night out with Flack. In his drunken ramblings, Flack had thrown out the fact that Lindsay adored Christmas, something he'd heard from… Danny couldn't remember.

The CD had all of his family's favourites on it. Most of them were classics from the church services he attended over the years.

He just hoped she liked them as much as he did.

* * *

Lindsay stepped into her office at the end of her shift, her eyes burning. She'd been looking at computer screens and microscopes all day. She rubbed them tiredly, hoping from the bottom of her heart she'd be able to sleep the entire night without being called in.

The beautifully wrapped gift came as a surprise.

She debated with herself for all of two minutes before she sat at her desk and carefully unwrapping the paper. She smiled as the gift came into view.

_Christmas Favourites_

It was an uncreative title for such a CD, but she realized the connotation. Flipping over the case, she quickly read the titles and her smile grew. She took off down the hall, poking her head into Stella's office.

"Hey Stel, thanks for the CD."

Stella looked up from her computer screen, her eyebrows knitting in confusion. "What CD?"

Lindsay held up the object. "You didn't leave this wrapped on my desk?"

Stella shook her head. "Not me, sorry."

It was Lindsay's turn to knit her eyebrows. "Then who did? You're the only person I've told that I don't have any Christmas CDs."

"I'd say you've got either a stalker or a secret admirer."

Lindsay laughed at Stella's conclusion. "Thanks for the vote of confidence, Stel. I'm out, see you tomorrow."

"Night Lindsay.

* * *

Lindsay sat on her couch later that night, her new CD playing in the background as she sipped at a glass of white wine and read a book she'd been reading in her off hours. However, her mind was far from the book. Instead, it was on the music floating from her speakers.

Who had heard her conversation with Stella? She hadn't noticed anyone in the room with them at the time and she was disgustingly early, as per usual. From what the grapevine said, Stella had been in hours earlier on a case, but most of the others hadn't made it in yet, She didn't remember seeing anyone while she was talking to Stella either.

She put aside the book, shrugging off the pretence of reading it. Instead she focused all of her mental capacities on figuring out who had given her the CD. It was a thoughtful present, a CD that was created from a number of different ones and not just a store bought compilation. The cover had been created on a computer with icons and pictures.

That left very few people who would present her with such a thoughtful gift. Stella had said she hadn't given it to her, and from the surprise on her face, Lindsay believed her completely. She shrugged off Mac Taylor because though he was thoughtful and quiet, he wouldn't be one to give a gift that personal to one of his subordinates.

_Except maybe Stella, _she thought to herself.

Sid spoke about Christmas constantly, ever since he'd found out about her obsession with it and though she enjoyed his support in her happiness, he spent all of his time in the morgue and virtually none of it in the lab. Dropping her head back against the couch, she groaned. That left three people. The lab rat, Adam. He was a lab rat through and through and didn't venture out of his kingdom unless he was returning lab results to a CSI. Sheldon Hawkes was sweet and caring, quiet and careful. He could have overheard her conversation with Stella.

Her heart jumped as she thought about the last member who could have placed the CD on her desk. Danny Messer had access, yes, but he wasn't as quiet or careful as most of her other colleagues. He would have had to be in the room, or Stella would have had to tell him about it. Sure, their teasing and flirting had increased with their conversation in the hallway following the Nettles case, contrary to what she'd thought.

She figured he'd back off completely. Instead, it seemed turning him down had increased his determination. Sure, he hadn't been overt about it, but they'd never been. She found herself much more comfortable around him with the increase instead of the awkwardness she was anticipating.

With a sigh, she stood and made her way to her bathroom, keen on a shower. This puzzle would have to be left to solve another day.

* * *

_**This entire story is going to be Christmas fluff. Complete and utter Christmas fluff. This is mostly because I'm so depressed with the lack of DL. Brightside, rumour has it Anna's going to be back in full in January… better than my estimated February Sweeps!**_

_**There's going to be a lot of fast updates for the first eighteen chapters or so because my goal is to have it all done by Christmas Day. With exams, I might get behind. There's going to be 2 chapters until I catch up with the date, then a chapter a day. If the reviews are good and I have more than the 2 chapters all written, I might post more. Of course, that's bribery, but what can a girl do?**_


	2. Christmas Chocolate

**Chapter 2 **– **December 2, 2006 **

She was absolutely exhausted. She'd run absolutely everywhere today and she hadn't had a second to herself. Her bagel for breakfast had been the only thing she'd eaten since the beginning of her twelve hour shift and the case she was working on had brought not only the beginnings of a killer headache, but the way it was going, she didn't see sleep for her within the next twelve hours.

For now, she'd settle with a moment of silence off of her feet.

She stepped into her office, her hand pinching the bridge of her nose before going up to rub around the bone above her eye. This headache was shaping up to be a beautiful one.

She pulled open her desk drawer, aiming for the Aspirin she'd taken to keeping there – if she ever admitted it, for Danny as much as for her with some of the doubles they pulled – and found her hand contacting with something that was not her pill bottle.

She looked down in alarm and found a bag of Hershey's Chocolate Kisses in the colours of Christmas.

Pulling them out of her drawer with a soft smile, she almost ripped open the bag completely. Chocolate was a good way to a girl's heart. As she dove in to grab one of the chocolate bits, she felt the paper on the back of the bag. Flipping over the package she read the familiar scrawl.

_Montana,_

_Chocolate just because._ _They're Christmas and you love Christmas. I hope you enjoyed the CD._

_-D_

Lindsay felt her heart swell. 'Just because'? And he gave her that made CD? She wasn't going to question it at this point, simply because she was hungry and felt like crap. Unwrapping one of the chocolates she popped it in her mouth, breathing a sigh of relief as it melted on her tongue.

She didn't get much time to bask. Her phone beeped with a message and she groaned, pulling it out and checking who wanted her now. She was half way to the door before she turned and went back to her desk and the chocolates.

* * *

Danny was finally finished. He'd seen Lindsay running around all day and felt a wave of pity for her. He'd at least managed to get a few hours of sleep before being called in again. He stopped in their office to grab the jacket he'd thrown there earlier in the day. On his desk was one white, one red and one green Hershey's Kiss.

He grinned as he picked them up, noticing the note with her neat handwriting underneath.

_Danny,_

_I did enjoy the CD, thank you. These are for you._

_-Montana_

Her pen name didn't escape him. He knew that as much as she nagged him about not calling her Montana, she adored the nickname. Lindsay was for serious situations.

He looked at the chocolates he held in his hand. He'd made himself a promise the night he created her CD and that was to do two things: 1) show Lindsay that a relationship with him wasn't going to be a bad thing, regardless of the rumours around the lab and 2) focus on the subtle ways of winning her over. If there was one thing he had learned about Lindsay Monroe, it was that she preferred small gestures to big overtures.

He dropped two of the Kisses into his desk drawer for some other time and the third he took with him. He found her in the trace lab, going over something from her case. He stepped in, gathering his courage for what he was about to do. Making sure no one was paying attention, he wrapped an arm around her, dropping the kiss into her pocket.

"These were your kisses Montana. Though I can't complain about you sharin' 'em with me." The words were soft and low in her ear. She'd tensed when his hand brushed her hip, but relaxed, marginally, when she realized it was just him.

"Consider it a thank you," she replied, looking at him sideways as he braced himself against the table.

He shot her a smirk as he pushed off the edge and headed to the door. "The real thing woulda been so much better."

He didn't have to look back to know she was blushing.


	3. Decorating the Break Room

**Chapter 3 **– **December 3, 2006 **

"Hey Messer! You busy?"

Danny had been on his way to paperwork, thankful that for one day, crime had decided to take a vacation and that was all he had. Of course, the fact that it was just mundane paperwork was bugging him. Lindsay's voice gave him hope that there was something he could do instead.

"Depends, Montana. Is this another experiment?"

She laughed, ignoring the heat that rose in her cheeks. "Well, with crime's vacation, Stella, Hawkes and I are all on paperwork duty. I'm assuming you too?"

"Yeah."

"Good. We're having a paperwork party in the break room."

Danny raised an eyebrow.

"With popcorn. Well, actually, we're interspersing our paperwork with decorating. The popcorn garlands were Stella's idea."

"Garlands?"

"It's a Christmas thing. Haven't you ever heard of popcorn garlands?"

"Woah. We're making them?"

"Yeah. Wasn't my idea. I'm sure Stella just wanted to make sure she had something else to occupy herself with so she isn't completely annoyed with paperwork."

It was Danny's turn to laugh. "Sounds like our Stel. Let me grab my stuff, okay?"

* * *

"We used to do this all the time," Stella was explaining to Lindsay as the strung kernels of popcorn on either end of a piece of thread. "Popcorn garlands are cheap and easy to make, so it occupied us and let us help in the decorating every year."

Lindsay flashed Danny a smile as he dropped his papers on the table. "Every year?"

"Something to keep us in the Christmas spirit. I haven't done it in years."

"My family gets together for dinner, and my mom used to make a gingerbread house with us kids every year, but that's about it," Danny volunteered. "Now that me and Louie are out of the house, she works with the nieces and nephews."

"My family was Christmas crazy," Lindsay said. "We have a hot cocoa recipe, watched _How the Grinch Stole Christmas,_ had a fire every night… We did a lot around the Christmas season."

"My family is pretty low-key about the whole season," Hawkes said. "We get the kids new pyjamas every year, but other than that, its Christmas dinner."

"I used to get a new pair too," Lindsay exclaimed with a sad smile.

Danny and Stella exchanged a look. Stella could almost physically see Danny filing that information away for later and resisted the urge to grin. Sometimes her co-workers were so predictable.

Lindsay passed her end of the garland to Hawkes, splitting Danny's pile in half. Shuffling through them quickly and efficiently, she pulled up the files that were identical to hers. She piled the remainder back on the others and flipped them open, copying down her information from the files and tossing them back over to his pile to sign.

"You don't have to do that, Montana."

"If you're going to help us decorate, you're going to have to cut down on this pile, Messer. How long have you been procrastinating on it all?" Lindsay retorted. "We've been doing this the whole time, and Stella and I have been in here since about nine."

"The whole time?" Danny asked.

"The swapping thing. One takes half the cases you've been paired on together and works on both copies. Then there's just the personal stuff to add before it gets signed and done. It's more efficient," Stella explained. "You want to give this a try?"

Danny eyed the end of the thread Stella held out to him warily. "I don't know."

"Its easy," Lindsay spoke up. "I learned."

"Can I get a half decent dent in this pile first? Even with your help I have ages worth of case reports to work through."

Lindsay rolled her eyes. "Danny, it's really easy. There's a needle on the end of that thread and you just thread the kernel on. There's absolutely nothing difficult about it."

"I know that, Monroe, thanks," Danny retorted.

"You afraid of something?" she challenged. "Or maybe it's difficult for you, even if it's easy for the rest of us?" If there was one thing Lindsay knew, it was that Danny couldn't resist a challenge.

He grumbled good-naturedly, taking the edge from Stella and picking up a piece of popcorn. It cracked as he tried to get it on the needle. He turned to Stella, but she had already moved on to paperwork and the mirth in her gaze told him she'd rather watch him break many more kernels before helping him. Hawkes was completely concentrated on his end to watch him.

Lindsay giggled. "Don't push so hard," she coached. "They actually slip on pretty easily." She took the needle from his hand, brushing her fingers against his before quickly and skilfully slipping another fluffy kernel onto the thread.

"And watching you do that makes me feel so much better," he said sarcastically.

Lindsay chuckled again, handing the needle back to him and presenting him with another piece of popcorn. "You can do it, you just have to be a bit more gentle."

It took a few more times before Danny managed to get one on properly. "There," he announced. "I've made my contribution."

Lindsay and Stella laughed before the latter spoke. "That's okay. We're going to need you and Hawkes to help us hang them and the other Christmas garlands around the room."

Danny met Stella's gaze. "That's a little crazy isn't it, Stel? Mac hates decorating the break room."

"We over-rule him," Stella declared, determination flashing in her eyes.

Danny knew better than to try and argue with her. Plus, when it came down to it, he could defend himself against Mac's wrath by hiding behind Stella. Instead, he sighed, turning back to his paperwork.

"Hey, Hawkes," Lindsay called after a few minutes of complete silence. "The CD stopped, can you hit play again?"

It took Danny a few minutes to place the song before he locked his eyes on Lindsay's. She blushed a rather fetching shade of pink. "I like your choice, Montana."

"I got it from a friend of mine," she returned. "They left it for me because I left most of my Christmas stuff, including my CDs back in Montana."

* * *

It was hours later that Stella stood and stretched, taking in the miles of popcorn garland they'd put together as well as the box of yearly decorations in the corner of the room. "This is where you come in, boys."

"Are you kidding me? Mac's still here," Danny said. "There is no way I have that much of a death wish."

Lindsay and Stella exchanged a look and Danny felt he was seriously missing something. "Lindsay and I are going to take these to Mac. He should be about an hour in putting the finishing touches on them and going over them to send them to the higher ups," Stella explained. "We'll be back in ten minutes to give you guys a hand."

"And," Lindsay added. "We're getting dinner."

That was enough to catapult Danny into action. It wasn't often he'd allow a woman to pay for dinner. It wasn't in his nature, morals or genes. However, if he was going to get dinner out of the deal, he'd decorate the whole lab.

* * *

Stella poked her head into Mac's office later that evening. "Lindsay and I sprung for Chinese. You up for dinner?"

"Sure," Mac said, thankful to take time away from the paper. Apparently he really enjoyed field work. He heard the carols when he was twenty feet from the room. "Stella, what did you get the others to do?"

"I can't believe you'd blame me," she said indignantly. "We all contributed!"

"Under who's suggestion? Decorating the break room doesn't strike me as something Lindsay would do and I know Danny wouldn't."

Stella rolled her eyes. "There is no way I'm letting you be Scrooge this year Mac Taylor. You are going to have fun this Christmas, understood?"

Mac didn't reply but did hold in the groan when he saw the full extent to which Stella had gone in decorating the room. Popcorn garlands were strung all around the glass windows, interspersed with green and red streamers and small strings of Christmas lights. Window stickers of gifts, stars and evergreen trees were scattered on the windows facing into the lab.

If Mac was honest with himself, not only could it have been worse, but it was tastefully done. However, what really stopped him from making any sort of comment was the happiness on the faces of the rest of his team. The way Lindsay, Hawkes and Danny were chatting away made him stop and allow them this little bit of happiness.

"I'm assuming the paperwork is done?" he said, stepping into the room.

"Party pooper," Stella teased as she stepped in behind him. "The armfuls of files from a few hours ago is all of it."

"All of it?"

The occupants of the room grinned. "We had a system," Lindsay said proudly.

Mac just shook his head. "So what do we have here?"

* * *

_**Sorry about the semi-awkwardness of this and the lack of quality DL fluff. Trust me, by the end of this story you're really going to need your toothbrushes. Hope you paid attention to each member's Christmas traditions!**_


	4. Christmas Pajamas

**Chapter 4 **– **December 4, 2006**

He could not believe he was doing this. New York shopping centres on weekends were normally crazy, but add the fact that it was December and thus, Christmas shopping time, it was absolutely insane. The lengths he would go through for his Montana. Of course, it wasn't like he was doing anything that night anyway, regardless of the fact that it was a Friday night.

For that was the reason he was strolling through a mall with Stella. As a guy, he had little idea of how to estimate a woman's size and had brought Stella along. His goal was to fulfil one of Lindsay's Christmas traditions: a new pair of pyjamas. Stella was one of the few people he trusted completely to keep a secret like this and keep the teasing to a minimum.

From what he'd gathered in the break room the previous day, she hadn't received a pair the previous year, her first year away from home. Danny seriously felt that traditions were things that were more than necessary to maintain and he wanted to make Lindsay's second Christmas one that would be much more memorable than her first.

"So explain something to me, Danny," Stella started, glancing around at the stores as they walked. "You'd rather spend your Friday night in a crazy mall?"

"I didn't have anythin' else planned, Stel. You know that."

"Again, a mall? Not going out with Flack?"

"Date night for Flack," Danny answered. "I'm over the days of playin' the third wheel."

Stella laughed. "Whatever you say Danny. You have something specific in mind?"

"Other than PJs for Montana, nah. I'm savin' my shoppin'."

"You're mental," she said. "Shopping this time of year is crazy stuff."

He raised an eyebrow. "Don't tell me you're done."

"I'm a woman, Messer. Of course I'm done my shopping."

Danny sighed. "I'm going to be so dead, aren't I?"

"If you leave it too late, yeah. But, we have a goal tonight and I don't want to stay any longer than I have to. Christmas shoppers are completely insane."

* * *

Lindsay couldn't stop the large smile that blossomed over her face as she noticed the white wrapped gift on her desk when she stepped in the next day. She and Danny had been called to a scene that morning and this was the first chance she'd had to get into her office.

She sat down, carefully examining the package from all of the angles she could see. Rectangle, fairly non-descript… the paper was gorgeous. She sighed. There was nothing on the outside that would give away what was on the inside. Slowly and carefully she removed the ribbon and slid her fingers between the paper and the tape.

Unfolding the paper she came across the box and finally decided what had to be inside. The box was the perfect size and shape for clothing of some sort. Checking the underside of the box, she quickly slit the tape holding the box closed with her finger nail and opened the lid. Inside was green, snowflake-patterned cloth. Pulling it out of the box she found herself looking at a warm flannel pyjama shirt. Since it didn't seem like the box had been sent from any far distance, she raided the tissue paper for a note or card of some sort. She found it hidden beneath the pants.

_Traditions are traditions, Monroe. Maybe you should get two pairs this year to make up for the one you didn't get, huh?_

_Danny_

She grinned widely. Sometimes he could still surprise her.

* * *

Danny looked up as the door to the layout room opened and Lindsay stepped in. Adam had tracked him down and was explaining something about one of the test results from their case and thus, didn't really think twice about Lindsay's presence.

Danny tried not to jump when he felt a weight settle in his lab coat pocket. Glancing down at her briefly, he noticed her focus on Adam and nonchalantly put his hand in the pocket. Sure enough, there was a piece of paper and another Kiss. He looked at her again, but her gaze hadn't moved from the lab tech babbling on in front of them. The tell was the quirk of her lips.

Once Adam left, he was about to ask her about the gifts in his pocket, but she opened her mouth first.

"I have to go talk to Stella. You okay to hold down the fort for a few minutes? Then I'll come back and help you process the vic's clothes?" She didn't give him a chance to reply.

That didn't stop him from withdrawing both items from his pocket and reading over the little note.

_You spoil me Messer. Soon I'm going to come to expect this from you._

It was short, sweet and to the point, so much like Lindsay herself that Danny couldn't stop himself from chuckling. Quickly, he unwrapped the Kiss and popped it into his mouth before gloving up and getting down to his work.

* * *

Lindsay was completely surprised by the note in her locker at the end of the day.

_For you, Montana, anything. _

Four words that had a million and one interpretations. He didn't know what to think of it, really. He could have meant something completely platonic about it, but with the way he'd been acting, she wasn't so sure. She knew she technically shouldn't be encouraging him but really couldn't help herself. His attention was flattering, especially since it was oh-so-coveted by most of the female staff of the building. Between Danny and Flack, the entire lab was involved in a fan club.

She sighed, trying to remember why she'd turned him down.

_Don't go down that thought path, Monroe_, she scolded herself. With another sigh, she pocketed the note and grabbed her stuff to head home.


	5. Danny's Cold

**Chapter 5 **– **December 5 2006**

He felt like crap.

His nose was completely clogged and he couldn't find a single medication that allowed him to sleep through the night. He hoped the dark circles under his eyes weren't as visible as he thought they were. Of course, he worked in a lab with people paid to be observant so those chances were pretty slim.

"Sick, Danny?"

He groaned.

Lindsay chuckled sympathetically. "That time of year. Is there anything you can take for it?"

"I tried," he answered. "Couldn't find anythin'."

"Stella's been looking all over for you so I don't think you're going to get a reprieve." She rested a hand on his arm as she moved to step past him. "I have to go see Flack about the toy store case."

"I heard about that. Some guy got bludgeoned to death, right?"

This made Lindsay laugh out loud. "Yeah. It looks like he got beaten to death trying to get a toy for a Christmas gift."

"You're kiddin'," he said, awe in his voice.

"No word of a lie. Flack's got some of the customer names that bought the same toy. They had a new shipment that morning, so we can limit it to people who most likely bought it."

Danny sighed dramatically. "You always get the interesting cases."

"I promise to give you all of the gory details," she said with a grin. "Go find Stella. I'll see you later."

* * *

"How are you feeling?" Lindsay asked as she stepped into their office around lunch time. In her arms, she carried a bag of take out and a bag from a pharmacy.

"You brought me drugs?" he asked with a raised eyebrow, his stuffed nose twisting the consonants of the sentence.

"And soup. Stereotypical, I know, but I find it always helps," she said. "Plus, now you get to hear all about the guy who died trying to buy a Christmas gift."

That made him perk up as she passed the drugs over their desk and set the take out bag on her own.

"I can't believe he actually died over this," she said, shaking her head. "There had to have been a pecking order or something."

"You have nieces and nephews, right? Have you even wanted the newest toy for one of them?" Danny asked.

"I usually leave that to their parents. They can spend all that money."

"And go through all the hassle, right?" he said with a smirk.

Lindsay shrugged. "One of the downsides of being a parent, I guess. I get to get hem the eclectic gifts."

One eyebrow raised as he gazed at her. "Eclectic? You're the eclectic aunt?"

"It's how the family explains my job," she replied with a wave of her hand. "And why they don't have any cousins from me."

Danny wisely left that comment alone. "Chicken noodle?"

She blushed. "Yeah."

"What's with the pink, Montana?" he asked, elaborating when she looked at him in confusion. "You're blushing."

She hoped her face didn't go any redder. "It was one of the only bags I had left in my apartment," she started to explain as she pulled two Thermoses from the bag."

"It's homemade? How did you get time?"

"I made it the last time I had a cold, a couple of weeks ago," she defended.

"When did you go get it? You didn't know I had a cold before."

"I might have made Flack stop by my apartment on our way back from talking to some of the store workers."

"Might have, Montana?"

"Okay, okay, I did. But don't tell Mac, I'm pretty sure he'd kill me."

"Stella would hug you," he returned. "I overheard her complaining to Hawkes that my cold was making me miserable to work with."

Lindsay smiled. "I can believe it. Mind you, Hawkes was complaining about my attitude when I had the same problem so she probably felt she had someone to commiserate with."

"You're cranky when you're sick?" he teased, knowing very well she'd been down right cruel. Stories mentioned her ripping the head off of a poor lab tech for taking too long with her results. He wished he could have been there just to see the poor kid crumble.

She threw a ball of paper at him. "Shut up."

At the end of their meal Danny let out a happy sigh. "Drugs, soup and excellent company, I'm feeling better already."

Lindsay blushed. "Let me know if you want any more soup. I'll make sure to make some more up."

* * *

As Lindsay stepped out of the subway, her phone beeped with a text message from Danny.

_Soup is good. Turn around._

He was behind her and he'd scared the ever loving junk out of her. "Damnit Danny!"

"Tell me, Montana, how fast can you whip up a new batch of that soup?"

She laughed as he linked arms with her and they headed out of the subway station.

* * *

_**Thanks to everyone that reviewed! I'm glad you're enjoying this. I have 2 more chapters before I'm completely caught up to the date… Of course, that's assuming I can write 2 today. Then the updates will slow down. I wanted to make sure I had that clear so that people didn't start being all upset because it's taking me a whole 24 hours instead of 6 to update jks!**_

_**Thanks again.**_


	6. Afternoon at the Orphanage

**Chapter 6 **– **December 6, 2006**

"Mac gave us the go-ahead to take the afternoon to do community service," Stella said at the meeting she'd called on behalf of Mac.

"Why do I think you have something specific in mind?" Hawkes asked warily, pretty sure he already knew the answer.

Stella took in a deep breath. What she was about to ask her team mates was a lot. "The orphanage I was at as a kid doesn't get a lot of visitors. I figured we could go over there today and spend some time with them, for Christmas."

Lindsay's eyes lit up like Stella assumed they would. The woman's heart was huge.

Danny, Stella knew, volunteered with kids as it was. Another day would be a privilege.

"Stella," Hawkes began, a smile drifting over his face. "I don't believe you really had to ask."

Stella grinned. "You guys are great," she said. "I'll meet you down in the lobby in fifteen minutes, okay?"

"For sure," Lindsay said wit a nod.

* * *

Lindsay looked up from making snow angels with a group of girls later that afternoon to see Danny racing around the snow-covered Central Park with a group of boys. He was good with those kids and for the millionth time she wondered why she'd turned him down. He was good with kids, he was sweet and caring, and he spoiled her rotten – not that the latter was the most important part, nor the most relevant.

Her heart swelled as she thought about it.

"Miss Lindsay, what are you looking at?"

Lindsay looked down at the little girl, sitting up much the same way Lindsay was, her hands braced behind her. "I'm looking at the silly boys," Lindsay answered. "You're going to put your hand prints into your angels wings."

The little girl looked behind her. "But you're putting them in yours too," she said.

Lindsay looked behind her and pasted a sad and upset look on her face. "So I did." Then she met the little girl's eyes. "I guess we'll just have to make another one to make it perfect, huh?"

"I've got a better idea," one of the older girls spoke up and Lindsay recognized the glint in her eye as completely mischievous.

"And what is that?" she asked.

"Well," another one of the older girls picked up, "the boys are looking a little pre-occupied. I'm sure we could get in a couple of really good shots before they even realize what happened."

Lindsay waved Stella over from where she was helping some kids make a snowman. "I have a better idea. Ladies, we're going to war."

* * *

Danny was having fun. He usually did when he was around kids. The shelter gave him another excuse, other than his work with the YMCA, to interact with kids and give something back to community. It didn't have the exact same reward as knowing the names of every kid he was playing with, but it made him feel better about the work he did.

"Hey!" he heard one of the boys yell. The kid was rubbing the back of his head, where snow had attached to the threads in his hat. Danny began to make his way towards the boy, to check and make sure the snowball hadn't been filled with ice, when he felt one make contact with his back.

"What the…" When he turned, there was no one behind him.

It took him a few minutes to pin down exactly what was going on and a few more snowballs before he put together the puzzle pieces. Most of the girls were missing and he couldn't spot Lindsay or Stella anywhere. "Alright, Montana, that's not playing fair," he taunted bending over to pack up a snowball of his own.

"Who said anything about playing fair, Messer? Isn't the phrase 'all's fair in love and war'?"

He spun around to face her and found her tossing a snowball up and down in her hand. "So this is war?" he inquired unnecessarily, holding the snowball he'd begun to pack with both hands.

"Of course its war," she said with a grin.

"Well, Montana, you just made a mistake."

She raised an eyebrow. "A mistake?"

"You just lost the element of surprise." The words were not thirty seconds out of his mouth before another snowball hit him from behind. He turned to find a giggling girl. When he faced Lindsay again, she was grinning.

"Are you sure about that?" she teased.

"Rules?"

She smirked in arrogance. "Danny, I told you. All's fair in love and war. This is war."

The gleam in his eyes turned predatory. "And all's fair."

* * *

Two hours later, the women – better prepared and with more ammunition – had managed to kick the rears of the boys. Even with Hawkes, Danny, Mac and Flack, who'd tracked them down and joined in half way, the girls had planned in advance and had prepared accordingly.

They sat in the break room, each with warm cups of coffee to warm up their red noses, cheeks and ears. Lindsay and Danny were seated on the couch, Danny with an ice pack pressed to the back of his head. One of the girls had accidentally turned a snowball into a ball of snow under a layer of ice and had nailed the back of Danny's head with it. The entire team was she he had a bump to show for it.

"Thanks for doing this with me guys," Stella said for the millionth time.

"Stella, stop saying thank you," Lindsay said with a laugh, removing the ice from Danny's hands to move it around before replacing it again carefully. The movement was second nature to a caring heart like hers, but the others watched in awe as Danny allowed it without question.

"We woulda done it anyway," Danny agreed. "It's a nice thing to be doin' at Christmas."

Stella smiled. "I do it every year, just for old times sake."

"Just once a year?" Lindsay asked curiously.

"I'd go more often, but Christmas is the time of year I make time to go visit," the curly haired detective explained.

"You should make time to go more often," Lindsay said with a huge grin. "Those kids are fantastic."

Stella's responding smile was genuine and soft. "They are, aren't they."

"I gotta admit though," Danny spoke up. "I am goin' ta be sore tomorrow."

Lindsay laughed. "I'm going to have a bruise where you pegged my thigh, Messer."

"Who got the back of my head again, Monroe?"

"I still say it was one of the kids," Lindsay responded, her face a mask of innocence.

"Not one of those brats has aim that good," Danny answered. "Nah, Monroe, definitely know it was you."

Lindsay rolled her eyes. "I said I was sorry, Danny. I didn't know that ball was snow in ice. I wouldn't have thrown it if I knew."

Hawkes stretched awkwardly in the break room chair. "I'm going to go home. Since we took the afternoon off, I have a shift tomorrow morning."

The rest of the team sighed. That was Mac's deal. Plus, it wasn't like crime observed the Sabbath, after all.

"Until tomorrow morning guys," Stella agreed, following Hawkes out of the room.

"You know, Montana, I think you owe me dinner for peggin' me in the head," Danny said, turning to Lindsay.

"Come on, Danny! How many times do I have to say I'm sorry?" she whined.

"One more time, with dinner," he promised. "Now, let's go."


	7. Christmas Carols

**Chapter 7 – December 7, 2006 **

Lindsay was extremely happy.

It was stupid really, especially since she was the one to put the breaks on when Danny suggested they make something more of their relationship, but their "apology dinner" the previous night had, Lindsay admitted, the atmosphere of a date. And she'd had an excellent time.

Thus, in her happiness, she hadn't realized she'd been singing along with her carols CD in the lab. She knew she had tonnes of stuff to analyze, a million cases worth of evidence to go over and knew there was no way she was going to do it in silence. She was also glad no one would kill her for listening to the carols in a basically empty layout room.

She jumped when she noticed Danny in the doorway. "You scared me," she said, stopping all singing.

"Don't stop on my account," he encouraged. "You always sing?"

Lindsay blushed. "When I'm alone."

"That's too bad," he responded. "You should treat people to it now and then."

If anything, her blush intensified. "I'm not that good."

Danny chuckled. "Please, Montana. Not that good? You take lessons as a kid?"

"Just school and church choirs," she admitted. "Never more than that."

"You chose the lab over the stage?"

"Stage fright, Danny. I had a horrible time singing the few solos I took for choir."

Danny shook his head. "Gotta admit, Monroe, a voice like that… I'm sure you'd'a been beautiful on stage."

It took Lindsay a few minutes to respond, but by the time the words registered in her mind, he was already gone. She hated it when he left her hanging like that, with a comment that could be taken as a caring co-worker as much as it could be taken as a lover's comment. Damn that man.

* * *

"Montana," Danny called, catching up to the brunette just before they were both off for the afternoon. "What are you doin' tonight?"

"I had a couple of errands I wanted to run this afternoon, why?"

"I gotta surprise for ya, if you're up to it."

"A surprise?"

Danny laughed. "It wouldn't be a surprise if I told you would it? You up for dinner too?"

She raised an eyebrow as they both pushed through the locker room door. "You're planning on monopolizing my night?"

"I'd take your afternoon too, but I figured that would imply somethin'."

She had to admit, the sound of Danny taking over the next eight hours of her life really didn't sound that horrible. "What did you have in mind?"

"Surprise, Montana. Do I have to define the word for you?"

Lindsay laughed. "All right, all right. I'm going to need a time to be ready."

"You mean you're going to go to dinner with me?" He actually sounded genuinely surprised.

"If you're serious about this, sure. I'm not doing anything tonight."

Danny couldn't stop the grin from turning up the corners of his mouth. "I'll be by at six, okay?"

"Sure. Dress code?"

He smirked, and she knew his answer was not going to be on she was going to like. "You'll think of something."

She groaned, slapping his arm as they walked out of the room. "I hate you."

* * *

Lindsay gasped as she walked through the door to the church Danny held open for her. "Danny, what is this?"

"The church puts on a choir night," he explained, hand coming to rest on the small of her back. "My family and I used to come every year."

"That's past tense."

"With everythin' goin' on my parents decided they didn't want to come," he explained. "Last year I was out in the field." He dropped a ten dollar bill into the bin by the door and picked up two programs, passing one to her.

She thanked him with a smile and allowed him to lead her to a pew. They wandered slowly and it gave Lindsay the chance to admire the decorations. They were tasteful in blues and silver instead of the stereotypical red and green. Ribbons decorated the balcony edge of the upper level in the blue and silver that accentuated the old stone of the building.

Blue and silver bows topped each end of the pews she and Danny occupied as well as the rest of the pews. The flowers at the front of the room were blood red, standing out against the rest of the decorations, and standing out against the white of the choir's gowns.

She'd debated for hours on what to wear to the concert and to dinner. Eventually, she'd taken the half and half approach, pairing her favourite pair of dark jeans, embroidery on the back pockets, with a white v-neck sweater and black, heeled boots. She knew the sweater was soft as could be and she adored the feeling of it against her skin. By the way Danny had kept contact with it all night, she figured he enjoyed the texture too.

"The choirs get the first hour," he described, pulling her attention back to him. "The second half is all sing along."

Lindsay's eyes lit up. "What?" she breathed.

"Which part?"

"You brought me to a sing along concert?"

Danny shrugged, suddenly self-conscious. "Figured you'd enjoy it, that's all."

"Danny, this is awesome," she promised with a blinding smile.

He decided as the choirs started singing that it was worth it. He'd been utterly terrified to invite her to dinner and the concert, especially after everything they'd been through. He figured she'd take the night as a date and would immediately shoot him down, reminding him that she needed space. She'd surprised him by doing the exact opposite.

They'd had a great time at dinner, had more fun that he was probably willing to admit. There was no awkwardness between them, just simple conversation that went from work to glazing over family life. Lindsay had even opened up about some of her happier memories from Montana. This was what he meant when he'd proposed something more.

He wanted to see where things were going to go between them, that was all. A leopard never lost his spots after all, and Danny wasn't sure he was prepared for a full blown relationship between them. His player reputation was a little over stated, but there nonetheless. He hadn't ever been ready for commitment. He wasn't sure he was now, either, but with Lindsay, he was willing to try.

"Danny Messer?"

Danny hadn't realized intermission had snuck up on him. Apparently so had the young woman beside him. He looked her up and down, but it was the smile that blossomed over her face that gave it away. "Carmen? That you under all that hair?"

The woman laughed, tucking an errant strand of long black hair behind one of her ears. "I didn't know you were going to be here."

"Hey, I was workin' last year and couldn't make it. I've been here every other year."

"Where's the rest of you Messers? Isn't this a family affair?"

"Yeah, but Mom and Dad had other things to take care of."

"You're here by yourself?"

Danny chuckled. "Nah." He searched the room and found her cornered by a few guys he vaguely recognized. "Actually, you can come meet her."

Taking Carmen's elbow he led her towards the boys. From the look in her eyes he could tell she was relieved. But it wasn't Danny that spoke.

"Nick, what are you doing?" Carmen called.

"Come on, Carmen, look at her."

Danny chuckled. "I do every day. You okay, Monroe?"

Her movement towards him was immediate and she took his hand, reassuring him as much as her. "Yeah."

Danny pulled Lindsay closer to his side, disengaging his hand from hers to wrap it around her back reassuringly. "Some things don't change, huh?"

"Danny Messer. I shoulda known you'd bring someone as gorgeous as this woman." That was one of the other guys.

Lindsay expected him to get offended, defend her honour or himself. Instead, he just laughed. She looked up at him, hoping upon hope he wasn't being immature.

"She is beautiful, isn't she? My partner at the lab, Lindsay Monroe. Lindsay, old friends of mine, Nicholas Lopez, his sister Carmen, Benny Sueur and Tony Michaeli."

Lindsay was bright red as she shook Carmen's hand. "Pleasure to meet you."

"Any friend of Danny is a friend of ours," Tony said. "And I guess we owe you an apology."

Danny's eyebrow went up. "Apology?"

Benny nodded. "Your gal here is too beautiful not to hit on. That would be a crime."

Carmen rolled her eyes. "You boys are ridiculous, you know that? Absolutely ridiculous."

"Tell me, Messer. Between your Lindsay here and that other team mate of yours, have we only been treated to the cream of the crop or is there more where they came from?"

Lindsay couldn't believe her ears. Were they seriously having this conversation? And how could Carmen stand there so calmly?

"You think I've been paying attention? You see the women I work with," Danny answered.

Lindsay was about to speak, her cheeks already beet red from the conversation, but then Danny's hand on her hip began to move. It was subtle and soft, but it distracted her enough to allow the conversation going on around her to continue. Before she knew it, Danny was steering her back to their pew.

"Sorry about them," he said, intertwining his fingers with hers.

She was surprised at the gesture, and ducked her head. "It's no problem."

"Nah, I shoulda been there. They've always been like that."

Lindsay chuckled. "Danny Messer, every girl's white knight."

"Every girl doesn't matter," he told her, pressing a kiss to her temple. "I only need to be a white knight to one."

Her chance to respond was cut off by the beginning of the classic carols, the same ones he'd put on her CD. It took her a few minutes to get confident enough to sing loud enough for him to hear her clearly and even longer for her to get so enraptured with the music to completely forget there were people around.

Then Danny was treated to the experience of a life time. He adored everything about her, but her voice was gorgeous. He wished he could hear her more often, but he'd settle for this hour. The best part was that she hadn't let go of his hand,

* * *

"Montana, here we are."

She'd been zoned out since about the moment they left the church, but the smile on her face stopped him from asking if there was something wrong.

Lindsay's eyes blinked open as she took in her surroundings. They were in front of her building. She grinned at him. "Thanks, Danny. I…" She couldn't put into words how much she'd enjoyed the night.

"Its no problem, Montana. I'm glad you had a good time."

She grinned. "Good is an understatement." With a deep breath, she impulsively leaned over to kiss his cheek and hopped out of the car.

Danny didn't realize until he got home that there was a CD on the passenger's side. Picking it up, he identified it as the CD of the choir from the Christmas concert he'd missed. He flipped open his cell phone and hit her speed dial number. He wasn't going to think about the implication that she was two on his list. His mother was number one.

"Monroe."

"A CD?"

He was sure she was blushing. "You mentioned you missed that one and they were selling them for extra money for the choir to go on a trip this summer. I figured that meant you got to hear it and you got to add to something good for the kids."

"You going to come and sing along?" he asked brazenly.

He was rewarded by a laugh from her. "Figured I'd return the favour. With the CD I mean."

"So that's a 'no' on the singin'?"

"You'd have to be someone pretty special to hear that again," she taunted.

"Montana, I'm hurt."

She laughed again. "Good night Danny. I'll see you in the lab tomorrow."

She'd hung up before he could respond.

* * *

_**Longest and I think fluffiest yet. I'm glad you're all enjoying this. Keep the reviews coming, they mean the world.**_

_**And I hope I didn't jump too far ahead with the moment at the church. I tried to make sure in previous chapters that the fact that things didn't get awkward was apparent, and I hope that the moments at the church would have been workable…. Let me know if they're not. I rely on the readers to make sure everything fits!**_


	8. Christmas Baking

**Chapter 8 **– **December 8, 2006**

Lindsay almost groaned when her alarm went off the next morning. There had been a message on her voice mail she hadn't checked until she got home the previous night from Stella, reminding her that the next day was 'cookie day' at the lab. Thus, she'd spent the next two hours making a batch of her mother's gingerbread cookies. She'd collapsed into bed around 12:30.

Now she was wishing she'd planned in advance. She grabbed the cookie bin as she ran out the door, calling Stella and scolding her for not warning her before hand.

"You had all of yesterday, basically," Stella answered. "What did you do?"

Lindsay blushed. "Dinner and a concert," she admitted.

"You had a date last night?" Stella exclaimed, excitedly. "How was it?"

"I had fun," she replied, cryptically.

"What concert was it? The Christmas one at the Met?"

"Just a small choir concert," Lindsay answered, glad there was someone she could gush to.

"Who took you to that? Sounds like it could only be someone who knows the city."

Lindsay laughed. "That, Stel, is private information."

"So it was Danny then."

Lindsay hoped her shock that Stella had guessed didn't show through in her voice. "Danny knows of a church choir concert?" If they weren't doing this over the phone, Lindsay was sure Stella would have called her lie already.

"He and his family go every year."

"He didn't mention anything to me," Lindsay lied.

"Oh."

Lindsay would have sworn she'd heard disappointment in Stella's voice. "Anyway, I'm getting on the subway now, I should be there soon."

* * *

The break room table was already littered with plastic containers of cookies when Lindsay stepped in. Danny, Flack and Hawkes were already digging into the containers with gusto.

"You boys going to leave any for those of us that actually work?" she teased, setting her own Tupperware container on the table with the rest.

"People work here?" Flack quipped, taking another bite out of the chocolate chip cookie he was munching on.

Lindsay snorted. "This isn't the precinct."

"Kitten has claws this morning," Danny teased.

"'Kitten' is happy," Lindsay shot back, a smile tilting the corners of her mouth.

"Stella mentioned something about a date," Flack spoke up.

Lindsay rolled her eyes. "You guys are worse than high school girls. I went to dinner and a concert last night. Whether it can be considered a date remains to be seen."

"You must have had fun," Hawkes remarked.

"I did," Lindsay confirmed snatching a cookie from the only unlabelled bin. She bit into it and closed her eyes in bliss as the flavour took over her mouth. She dropped to a chair with the cookie. "Whose are these?"

"Bucket's unlabelled. Recipe looks old and well used though."

"Why, Flack, how detective-like of you," Lindsay teased. She really was in an excellent mood.

Making cookies was second nature to her, and as such she went through the motions without really thinking. That left her brain capacity to think of other things, like her night with Danny. She'd puzzled over whether or not to call it a date, over why she was holding back from him. She enjoyed their time together, their teasing, their conversations, their camaraderie and she'd come to the conclusion by the end of her baking that she wanted a relationship with Danny, damn the consequences.

The result had been a huge weight off of her chest.

"I bet you twenty bucks you won't be able to find out whose they are," Flack challenged her.

Lindsay raised an eyebrow, locking eyes with Danny as a smirk grew across her face. "You're on." They shook before Lindsay spoke up. "You'd be surprised at what I can find out about people."

The comment was not lost on Danny, who remembered their night at Cozy's very well. She had detecting skills that were unrivalled. He smirked back at her, knowing full well there was a good chance she'd be twenty bucks richer by the end of her shift.

* * *

Lindsay leaned against the doorframe of the trace lab, watching Danny put some sort of material through the GCMS. By the upturned corners of his mouth, he either knew she was there or he felt he had the breakthrough bit of his case.

"You gonna come in, Montana?"

She smiled as she pushed her shoulder off of the metal. "I didn't know you could bake."

The moment of surprise that flitted across her face was all of the answer she needed. "Baking, Montana?"

"The cookies are yours. They're excellent." She noticed the flush that crept over his cheeks at her praise.

"You're crazy."

"You should bake more often, though I would like to know when you had the time. I was up until after midnight because I'd completely forgotten."

"You're not going to get a confession out of me, Montana."

"I don't need a confession, Messer," she promised. "I just need you to back me up when I tell Flack I know whose cookies are unlabelled."

Finally, he met her eyes. The confidence in them startled him almost more than the fact that she'd figured him out. "How'd you figure it out?"

Lindsay leaned back against the lab bench, her hands bracing her weight. "I guess people didn't notice the other side of your recipe. It's all in Italian. You're the only person I know with an Italian background. The rest you confirmed for me right here."

He had to give her credit, she really was good. "I'm impressed."

"You should bake more often," she responded. "Though this whole element of surprise thing is working in your favour."

"In my favour?"

She took a deep breath and he knew that she was about to admit something big. "I'm starting to forget why I said 'no'."

He stood stunned, but was shocked out of it when her phone beeped. "Hammerbeck's calling me."

* * *

Flack hadn't given her the money he'd bet, but he didn't make her give him money either. Instead, they decided to call it a draw, regardless of Danny's testimony. She was just as happy at the end of the day as she had been in the beginning and hummed to herself as she almost skipped down the lab halls to her office. Even the idea of pulling a double shift couldn't spoil her mood.

Danny was sitting at his desk, a hand massaging over his forehead when she entered. "Hey Monroe."

"Why aren't you home?" Sure, she was tired, but she was happy and she didn't know what the next day would bring. She wanted to hold onto the happiness in her veins as long as she possibly could.

"The case," he said, as if she was crazy. "We are definitely pullin' a double."

"I know that, but I can hold down the fort for a few hours. We're just waiting for results, right?"

"No way, Montana. If you're stayin', so am I."

"Danny that's silly. Go home, get some sleep."

"You're not tired?"

She smiled softly. "Surprisingly, no. Go catch a couple of hours, I'll call you when we get our results in."

He nodded, pulling open his desk drawer and withdrawing a plastic wrapped package. He set it on her desk, on the papers she was supposed to be looking at as she watched him move. As impulsively as she had kissed his cheek last night, he pressed a kiss to her temple. "Thanks, Montana. I owe you."

She smiled. "I'll collect. Go get some sleep." She watched him leave before turning back to the package he'd left behind. Five cookies sat piled on top of each other, wrapped and tied with ribbon. She chuckled, carefully untying the ribbon and taking a blissful bite of the cookie she picked up.

She definitely hoped he'd be baking more often.


	9. Central Park Stroll

**Chapter 9 – December 9, 2006 **

Danny was surprised at the sight that greeted him the next morning when he stepped into his office. Lindsay was leaning down over her desk, arms folded and her head resting there. Her hair spilled over her arm, brushing the blotter on her desk. He chuckled softly to himself. Her neck was going to kill her when she woke up.

"Montana," he said softly, shaking her shoulder.

Lindsay groaned, her eyes blinking open. "Five more minutes."

"I thought you said you weren't tired," he teased, continuing to shake her shoulder gently.

"Danny?"

"Morning, Montana. Sleep well?"

She hissed as she lifted her head, glaring at him playfully. Her hand went to her neck, rubbing the back. "Didn't realize I'd fallen asleep."

"I never knew lab reports were that enthrallin'."

Lindsay blinked her eyes open, trying to get them to focus and moved around the pages on her desk. "I'm fine."

Danny chuckled. "What were you planning to do at lunch, Montana?"

"Sorry?"

"Ever seen Central Park in the winter?"

It was Lindsay's turn to chuckle. "Why, Mr Messer. Are you inviting me to have lunch with you while we walk through Central Park?"

"It's nothin' fancy, Monroe. Street meat and winter, that's all."

She hoped the disappointment didn't show in her voice or face. "You're on." She couldn't miss the happiness and relief in his. Maybe he still wanted something with her.

* * *

She was half way through a trace analysis when Danny poked his head into the lab.

"Ready to go?"

She looked up at him with a smile. "You willing to give me a hand to finish this up? Its trace from the Chapman case."

Gloving up, he took a peek at the slide she'd created and set under the microscope. "Definitely granular," he said, changing the focus of the microscope. "I'd put my money on a mineral."

Lindsay nodded. "That's what I thought. I'll leave Adam to run it through the GCMS. You buying?"

He rolled his eyes in mock annoyance. "I guess."

She grinned, removing her lab coat. "Then what are we waiting for? Let me get my coat."

* * *

He watched her as they walked down the New York streets, her on the inside, walking by the stores. It was something small she conceded to him every time they walked somewhere. He liked that he could pretend he was protecting her, even if it was something superficial.

She didn't hide herself from the cold, something that was characteristic of most New Yorkers. Instead, she walked as straight and tall as always, her hands in her pockets the only tell-tale sign that she was cold. She stood slightly behind him as he ordered two hot dogs and ribbed him about his choice of onions on his street meat.

He grinned, reaching in to his pocket and withdrawing a package of gum and explaining to her that most dates he didn't take for a hot dog in Central Park.

"I like simplicity," she told him in response. "I'm from small-town Montana. Simplicity goes farther than lavish."

He took her hand and made sure to meet her eyes. "I'll keep that in mind."

She blushed, but didn't let go of his hand, munching away with the other. The park, she decided, was gorgeous in the winter. She loved the greenery it displayed through the spring and summer months, and enjoyed the colours changing through the fall, but the way the snow glinted in the winter sun and the way it sat just so on the branches of the trees made her literally feel like she was walking through a winter wonderland.

Danny simply watched her and the awe that was reflected on her face. He figured she'd love the park in the winter, especially as the wandered further into it and the focus was on nature, not remembering that they were in the middle of a city. Even he got wrapped up in the beauty of it all.

Which explained why he didn't feel the tug on his hand as Lindsay bent down to grab a handful of snow and dropped it right on his neck.

Danny yelped, letting go of her hand and immediately trying to brush the cold, wet snow from the bare skin of his neck. When he turned to scold her, she'd already scampered a few feet away, a huge grin on her face. "Come on, Montana, that was cold."

She laughed, stepping backwards as he moved forward. "Its snow, Danny, it's supposed to be cold."

"That wasn't fair," he told her, continuing to advance on her.

She continued to giggle as she backed up further, very much aware she wasn't walking on the path anymore. Her shoes crunched into the snow of the park, creating footprints in the originally flawless white. She was shocked when her back came in contact with the hard wood of a tree trunk, her eyes previously too focused on his to pay attention to more than the snow beneath her feet.

Before she could move away, Danny was pressed against her front, pinning her hands – one of which contained another handful of snow she'd swiped off of the ground while he'd been preoccupied with preventing her first handful from spilling down his back – above her head. Lindsay had to try hard to keep her eyes on his as his body came in full contact with hers.

"Now, Montana, you promise to play fair?" he asked, his voice much lower than he wanted.

Her breath had shortened with his proximity. She'd never denied it, never avoided it. She was more than attracted to him, but it she would only readily admit to the attraction. He was hot. Nothing would get her to admit the deeper feelings. It took plenty of her willpower to focus on what he'd asked. "It was just a little bit of snow, Danny."

"It was a _cold_ bit of snow," he corrected. "Cold."

"Come on, Danny," she whined.

"That's twice you've one-upped me with snow," he told her frankly, forcing his mind to focus on the matter at hand and not on imagining what her legs would feel like wrapped around him while he kissed her senseless against the tree.

Her eyes were innocent. "I'm sorry."

He laughed, letting her hands go since she'd long ago dropped the snow. Then he bent down, pinning her body in place by a hand on her stomach, picking up his own handful of the white stuff. She shrieked as he dropped it on her head and ruffled it through her already messy curls.

"Danny!"

If she hadn't been laughing and grinning while she combed her fingers through her now-wet hair, he would have seriously believed that she was angry with him. As it was, he only laughed along side her.


	10. Wrapping for Charity

**Chapter 10 **– **December 10, 2006**

Lindsay was fidgeting with her hands and driving Danny completely nuts. She'd straightened their desks, gone through the reports, and he was sure analyzed absolutely everything in the lab. He was ready to just tie her down to a chair and the only thing he could chalk it up to was nerves.

"For God sakes, Montana, will you stop?" He'd reached his limit of exasperation with her. "What is going on?"

"Nothing, Danny, really."

He grabbed both of her hands, deftly removing the pen from her right. "Come on, spill. You're never like this."

She sighed. "Have you heard of the NYPD gift drive?"

"Of course I have, every officer donates."

She intertwined her fingers in his to make sure she stopped fidgeting. "They're looking for volunteers to help wrap them all. I… I was thinking of lending a hand."

"So why are you so nervous?"

She looked down at her hands. When he put it so straight forward, she wasn't exactly sure where her nerves were coming from. "I don't…. I don't want to go by myself."

"So ask Stel to go."

"I…I wanted to know if you wanted to come with me."

"Me, Montana?" The surprise was palpable in his voice.

She sighed, standing and removing her hands from his. "You know what? Don't worry about it. I figured it wouldn't be your thing. I'll go ask Stella, I'm sure she'd love to help."

"Woah, woah, woah, Lindsay, what's with this?"

"I… Never mind."

"Lindsay…" he said, grasping her hand.

She shrugged. "I just wanted to see if you wanted to come with, that's all."

"When were you planning on doing this?"

"After shift. I figured it would be nice to give back to the community, like with the kids at Stella's orphanage."

His thumb drifted back and forth over the back of her hand. "I'm off two hours after you."

"Yeah, I know. I'll talk to Stella, its okay." She moved to tug her hand out of his but he held fast.

"Hey, hey, hey… I'd love to do it, but… Why me?"

It was the question Lindsay had been dreading. She'd gone over time and time again why she'd turned him down, had walked over the conversation and every moment since she'd met him at the zoo. Every time she did, she found it was harder and harder to remember why she'd turned him down in the first place. This was especially true when she remembered how helpless she'd been when she and Flack watched him in Louie's hospital room, when she thought back to the broken look on his face when he turned over his badge and gun because of the cigarette butt she'd analyzed, when she thought about his reaction to Aiden's death, the way he reacted to the bombing and the way he'd held her, squeezing the breath out of her when he found her alive after going undercover.

She'd puzzled until her head pounded and still couldn't remember with enough clarity what her reasons had been to tell him no. All she could think about was how she'd wanted to be there for him through his horrible year. She couldn't fault him for wanting to be there for her, no matter what she wanted to work through.

"I… You…" She took a deep breath, trying to organize her thoughts. This was where her nerves came from. She focused intently on their hands. "I remember wanting to be there for you with everything that happened last year and wishing that you'd share what you were going through with someone that cared. I just… I realized that maybe I wanted someone there when I have to work through my stuff."

He lifted her chin with his free hand. "I'll meet you in here when I'm done?"

She almost breathed a sigh of relief when he didn't push her for anything. "Yeah. I'll grab dinner, anything in particular?"

He shot her a cocky grin, reluctantly letting go of her hand. "Surprise me."

Her grin was comfortable. "Always do."

* * *

She was kicked back in his chair, Chinese in her lap when he walked into the office, looking exhausted. He simply raised an eyebrow.

"My desk made me want to work," she said in explanation. "And why do you get a comfier chair?"

He chuckled, plopping down in hers. "You bring any for me?"

Lindsay waved at the bag on his desk. "Take your pick, but leave me some of the chicken balls."

He picked up one of the boxes. "Okay, Montana. Explain the night to me."

"The wrapping is every night down at the community centre and I figured, since we don't have shift tonight, it would be a nice thing to do for Christmas."

He raised a playful eyebrow and she rolled her eyes.

"What do you want me to say? I made it up so I can spend time with you?"

His eyes were playful. "Did you?"

She laughed, all of the earlier nervousness long-since dissipated. "No. You've seen kids open presents, Danny. For them it's the best part."

"That it is. My nieces and nephews are mental on Christmas morning. They give new reason to the phrase 'kid on Christmas morning'."

"My Christmas dinner was the night of Christmas day and that was when all the kids got to open the presents. My parent's den was an absolute mess by the time they were done."

"And let me guess, little Lindsay got the short straw."

"Every year," Lindsay agreed with a smile. "Mom and Dad were too worried about getting the kids in the bath and in their pyjamas and, of course, their parents had to help with the kids. It wasn't that bad."

"No worse than dumpster diving, huh?"

"Wrapping and bows doesn't have the distinctive odour," she agreed. "I've done worse."

The lapsed into silence, though Danny had moved from inhaling the food to moving it around in the box. She watched him out of the corner of her eye. "Danny?"

"Do you send gifts back?" He hadn't wanted to push and that's why he'd all but shut down. He didn't know what questions were fair game and which ones probed too deep.

Lindsay shrugged. "I send a card to each family. One of my brothers sends me some of the pictures his kids draw so I send them gifts, but…" She shrugged in conclusion.

He pulled open her drawer, where he knew she kept the Kisses he'd gotten her and tossed one over their desks. She caught it with a smile.

"Alright, Montana. Let's go wrap gifts."

* * *

Sheldon Hawkes stepped into the community centre after grabbing dinner at a nearby diner and glanced around. Two heads caught his eye. Lindsay and Danny were at one of the tables in the corner, heads bent together, Lindsay slapping at his hands and taking the ribbon from him. Hawkes watched in amusement as Lindsay scolded Danny while she expertly tied a bow in the ribbon.

What really surprised him was the tender kiss Danny pressed to Lindsay's temple and the embarrassed blush that drifted across her cheeks. He was equally as surprised when Lindsay didn't pull away, slap him or react violently in anyway.

Hawkes smiled, happy for whatever development they'd made in their relationship and moved to a table away from them. He'd afford them this little bit of privacy, for now.


	11. Danny's Headache

**Chapter 11 – December 11, 2006**

There was something wrong with the world. That was the only reason Danny could come up with for being called in on a case half way through an enjoyable evening wrapping presents with Lindsay. He'd been up for longer than he'd care to admit working a double homicide with Stella and Mac and the case had him exhausted and with a headache he was sure was going to develop into one hell of a migraine. He'd tried raiding Lindsay's drawers an hour ago, but she'd apparently run out of Aspirin and he was left to suffer. Thus, he'd taken to turning off every light in the office and leaning his head on his desk.

He groaned loudly when the light flickered on, relaxing slightly when whoever had turned it on, immediately gasped and shut it off. The next thing he felt was gentle fingers combing through his hair.

"Danny?"

"Too loud," he mumbled.

She chuckled under her breath. "Headache?" The word was whispered in the dark, as quiet as she could make it and still be heard. She understood his pain.

"Haven't been home yet," he answered.

Her fingers had started a very deliberate track over his head, still brushing his hair but applying more pressure in steady circles. "Mac and Stella?"

"Apparently they don't need sleep," he agreed on a moan as her fingers pressed firmly into his temples.

"You check for Aspirin?"

"None in your drawers," he answered smoothly, hissing when she moved her hands delicately down his neck to his shoulders.

She sighed. "You need sleep, Danny. You've got a tension headache."

"Can't." He moaned loudly when she removed her hands completely though he breathed a sigh of relief when she came back with a bottle of pills.

Lindsay tipped two onto his desk. "Coffee or water?" she asked softly.

He looked up at her blearily, his eye narrowing to focus on her. His glasses had long since been removed in an attempt to combat the pounding pain. "Water."

She smiled, combing her hand through the hair by his ear again. "Yeah."

* * *

Lindsay reached up to the cupboard in the break room, grabbing her mug and his simultaneously. Setting them both on the counter, she turned on the tap, letting the water run cold while she poured and fixed her first coffee of the day.

"Lindsay, have you seen Danny?" Stella called, poking her head into the break room.

"Why, what's up?" She didn't want to interrupt him unless it was urgent. She knew first hand how bad a migraine could affect a case.

"Prints came back on our case and I was going to take him with me to talk to the guy."

"He's in our office," she answered after a few minutes, picking up both mugs. "Want me to relay the message?"

Stella arched an eyebrow at the mugs.

"My first coffee. This is Danny's."

Stella chuckled when she caught sight of the water in Danny's mug. "He needs caffeine, not water and I really don't think he's tired enough to mix up the two."

"He asked for water instead of coffee to take with the two Aspirin," she replied.

"Headache?"

Lindsay sighed. "Worse, migraine."

Stella nodded. "I'll go find Mac to run this with me. Send him home."

Lindsay raised an eyebrow. "Okay…"

"We figured he hadn't made it home yet when Mac called him in…" Stella let the sentence trail off with a shrug.

"I'll tell him," Lindsay promised, slipping through the door Stella held open for her. "Thanks."

"Sure, but we might need a hand going over some of the evidence."

Her response was immediate. "Let me know. I'm not on a case right now, so I'd love to help."

Stella chuckled. "You going to make him owe you for this?"

"Maybe next time I have a headache of my own," Lindsay said with a smile. "Page me."

"You know it."

* * *

Lindsay made sure to guide the door closed with her foot when she entered the office again and delicately set her mug on her blotter before moving over to him.

"Dan," she whispered, gently placing a hand on her shoulder.

He raised his head, taking the proffered mug and picking up the two pills. "Thank you." He leaned back against his chair and she rested her hips against the back.

"Stella says go home," she said softly, her hand again massaging his temples, neck and shoulders.

"I'll be fine once these kick in," he promised. "There's a whole bunch of swabs to process, and trace is backlogged so I was going to process some of those."

"I'll work on those," she promised. "You need to go get some sleep."

"We've been up later than this and longer than this," he protested, "and the way your hands are feelin' on my shoulders is making this headache go away a lot faster."

She chuckled as she dug her thumbs into his neck, by his spine. "I'll take that as a compliment."

He sighed, rolling his shoulders when her hands moved back to his hair. He was going to have to get more headaches in the future if it meant she would so willingly do such wonderful things to his body. "Montana, you are fantastic."

"I know," she quipped. "You going to be okay?"

"Give me another fifteen minutes. Aspirin still has to kick in."

She smiled when he tilted his head back against her stomach. "I'll meet you in trace, okay?"

He nodded.

* * *

_**Technically, I'm all caught up so Chapter 12 definitely won't be up until tomorrow. I'm actually surprised its all caught up. Anyway, this one felt awkward to write, so if you liked it and you felt it fit with the story, please be nice and assuage my guilt? Hugs!**_


	12. Secret Santa Shopping

**Chapter 12 **– **December 12, 2006 **

"With the Christmas party in a week, I figured we'd better pick our Secret Santa now," Stella proposed, holding the Santa hat to the surrounding group. "Who wants to pick first?"

With a sigh, Lindsay held up her hand. "I'll start." She'd humour Stella.

The little piece of paper was folded in four and Lindsay opened it, playfully leaning away from Danny to open the paper. She giggled softly as he pulled at her wrists to try and get her to show him her result. She held fast, happy when the distraction of picking his own came around. She was half way out the door before he could catch her.

* * *

"Montana, you got me on your little slip of paper?"

Lindsay looked up from the microscope she was inspecting, placing both hands for support on the table. "Danny, you know I can't tell you that."

He came right up next to her, putting one hand between hers and the microscope so his shoulder brushed hers companionably. "I can tell you that your name's not on my slip," he said softly in her ear.

She sucked in a breath as quietly as possible. "Are you going to?"

He chuckled, low in his throat and she could feel his shoulder shift against hers. "I just did."

It was her turn to chuckle. "You're not on mine, either."

"Good, then you can help me find somethin' for Stel."

His voice was still soft and low in her ear and if she'd managed to suppress the shiver, she swore she'd be up for sainthood. "Are you asking me to go shopping with you?"

"I can't shop for women, Monroe. The last time I did, it was for my mom for Christmas."

"And you can't shop for Stella because…?"

"She's Stella. I can't go about getting her gift the same way I got my ma's. Stella ain't my mother."

"I guess I could go shopping," she conceded, turning her head and not even trying to pretend she was working any more.

"You not gunna tell me who you're buyin' for?"

She smiled. "Doesn't that take away from the whole 'secret' part of it?"

Danny stuck out his lower lip in a well-practiced pout. "Come on, Montana."

She laughed. "Maybe I'll tell you when we're shopping."

He groaned.

* * *

Danny owed her huge. There was a reason she preferred to make her Christmas gifts instead of buying them. She was never proactive enough to do her shopping early and never wanted to brave the malls and stores after the first week of December. She hoped above all else Danny wasn't doing any other shopping while they were there.

"Montana, we've been around this mall twice already. Can't we find something?"

"This is for your gift, Danny. You're going to have to start picking somewhere." They'd been in stores since entering the mall. In fact, Lindsay had been able to buy small things for some of the lab techs like Adam and even, much to Danny's chagrin, Marty Pino.

"It's Stella."

"So what would you get your sister?" He looked at her with a puzzled gaze, but Lindsay knew better. "Pretend you had a sister, what would you get her?"

"Lindsay," he whined.

She rolled her eyes. "I'll make you a deal. You go find somewhere for us to eat and I'll find something for Stel, okay?"

Without thinking twice, he leaned over kissing her cheek. "You are fantastic, thank you."

She was stunned, and stood completely still for a few moments while he walked off to find dinner. She closed her eyes, holding the memory for a moment in her head before wandering off to find a present for Stella.

* * *

She hated this. Eventually, she'd found a gift for Stella and Danny had just called her to let her know he'd found a spot and was waiting for her, but that wasn't what was bugging her. The way they had been wandering through the stores, the kiss he'd pressed to her cheek, it was all overly domestic for her. It screamed that they'd been in a relationship for a long time.

Something had changed and it had changed since the beginning of the "official" Christmas season. In fact, whatever they were working towards had started when she invited him to wrap presents with her. Their contact had been rather limited the last couple of days because of case restrictions, but it didn't stop him from making sure to at least flash her a smile – probably better characterized as a cocky grin – and left her a note every time he was in their office.

The worst part was that she still had those notes in an envelope in her bedside table.

Now she sat on her couch after dinner, a smile plastered on her face. There was nothing else she could do really. Dinner had been… fun. They chatted and amused each other to no end and Lindsay knew that their banter was something that made things normal between them.

Her phone rang cheerfully and she almost groaned. The last thing she was ready to do was work. The smile that crawled across her face was involuntary when she read Danny's name on the display. "Hey."

"Hey, Montana."

"You home with all of your bags?"

"Yeah. I got some funny looks on the subway, let me tell you."

She giggled at the thought of Danny on the subway with the bags she'd unloaded onto him. "That reminds me, you have some of my gifts. Can you bring them to the lab tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow's Saturday, Linds, I have the day off."

She almost slapped her forehead. She'd completely forgotten about their day off. "I totally forgot. Okay, I'll come get them."

"Call me when you're on your way, okay?"

"You going to time me, Messer?"

"Nah, just gunna make sure you're here and not kidnapped."

She rolled her eyes. "Same thing."

"Semantics," he countered. "They are slightly different."

"You're incorrigible."

"That's why you love me."

She smiled softly. "Yeah. I'll call you tomorrow." Her words were just as soft as her smile had been.

"Night, Montana."

"Good night, Danny."

* * *

**_Typed this in between my studying for my psychology exam and I wanted to get this up by the end of the 12th. Unfortunately, its 1am on the 13th. Against my wishes, unfortunately. I also hope, in a moment of severe insecurity, this isn't rushed. I had a few problems with the end, so let me know. It was a little bit under-fluffed, but there's gingerbread in the next one with icing and candy. There should be fluff in there!_**

_**Anyway, I'm hoping to get 13 up today and better than I did with this one. It depends if I manage to write up the outlines for the 4 possible essay topics I have on my December 14th exam! If not, it'll be up on the 15th/16th which means you get extra chapters in the same day. **_

_**Bedtime! Exam at 9am!**_

**_Hugs to all of the reviewers._** **_You guys have been ridiculously awesome. Those who go above and beyond the call of duty know who you are. Thank you._**


	13. Gingerbread and Wrapping

**Chapter 13 **– **December 13, 2006**

It was one o'clock before she was ready to head over to Danny's and she didn't go empty handed. While she'd been at the mall the previous day, she'd glimpsed a gingerbread house making kit in one of the windows. To leave it there would have been wrong and it gave her an excuse to spend extra time with him. She was paid to be observant, but she also had a killer memory.

"Messer." He sounded groggy and Lindsay almost laughed.

"Morning, Danny."

"Montana?"

"Yeah, are you okay if I come grab my stuff now?"

There was a pause that confirmed Danny had been woken by the phone. He always took longer to remember things he was supposed to do when he wasn't 'awake'. "Yeah, Montana, I'm good."

This time, she did chuckle. "Danny, you just woke up." Regardless, she started around her apartment, picking up her bag and sitting on the couch, phone in between her shoulder and ear while she slipped her shoes on.

"I'll be presentable by the time you get here," he assured her and she already heard the rustling of fabric that proved he was getting out of bed. "You got errands to run?"

She knitted her brow in confusion. "No. Why?"

"You're coming out here just to pick up your bags? We work tomorrow and I can bring them to the lab." He almost slapped his forehead when the words came out of his mouth. He wanted to spend the afternoon with her.

Her stomach dropped to her feet. Maybe he'd gone out again after they'd talked on the phone and had other plans. "I want to get them wrapped today. I don't know if there's going to be a crazy case in the next week so I want to get it done while I can. I can wait if you're busy."

"No, no." Then he paused. "You wanna spend the afternoon here?"

Oh, there was her stomach, back in its rightful place again. "And do what?" she asked stupidly, for a lack of anything else to say.

"Wrap presents? We'll make an afternoon out of it," he proposed.

She narrowed her eyes suspiciously, even though she knew Danny couldn't see it. "You aren't going to stick me with wrapping my gifts and yours, are you?"

"You have no faith in me," he exclaimed. "I can wrap my own presents."

"Okay, okay. Are you sure you want to spend the afternoon with me?" Part of her was still insecure about doing anything, simply because she wasn't sure how truthful he was being. In the time it would take her to get to his apartment, he could be showered, dressed and have kicked a night time guest out of his place.

"If you're not here in forty-five minutes, Montana, I'm filing a missing persons."

She wanted to slap herself for the feeling of warmth that flooded her chest. "Okay."

* * *

He'd rushed around his apartment, tidying the place up, mostly throwing everything into his bedroom and closing the door. He was putting away his dishes from the last time he'd had dinner when the knock came on the door. He pulled it open in surprise.

"How'd you get up here?" he asked.

"Your neighbours were on their way out when I came in and my hands are all full," she answered, holding up the aforementioned full hands.

He relieved her of half of the bags, taking them to his living room where he'd moved the coffee table to open the floor between the couch and the television. "Did you bring all of your gifts?" he asked with a playful grunt when he set the bags down.

She set her own handfuls down before slapping at his arm. "I had to bring wrapping and ribbons," she told him. "Then I had to pick and choose which presents to bring."

"Mine around?" He was already pawing through the bags to see if something jumped out at him. He recognized some of the gifts from things she'd bought the previous night, and some things that were new.

"I'm not that stupid, Danny." In reality, she hadn't decided what to make him for Christmas yet. There was no gift for him yet.

He pulled a box out of one of her bags and held it up to her eye level. "What's this, Montana?"

She looked up from unpacking some of her gifts, trying to figure out which gifts went to which member of the lab. "Gingerbread," she answered, as if it were obvious.

"I see that," he replied with a roll of his eyes.

Lindsay shrugged. "You mentioned you used to put one together with your mom, I figured we could try and put one together."

"Where did you find it?"

"Yesterday when we were shopping," she answered nonchalantly.

"And I didn't know?"

She smirked. "You were a little busy whining at the time, Danny."

He sighed. "I hate shopping in December."

She straightened her back from leaning over the bags. "Which do you want to do first?"

He arched an eyebrow.

"Gingerbread or presents?"

He looked between both, picturing the patience it was going to take to wrap the gifts. He had too much energy. "Gingerbread."

* * *

"Danny!" Lindsay squealed side-stepping away from his icing covered fingers.

"What?" he responded innocently, holding his hands, fingertips of his left covered in white sugar, by his ears.

"You keep your hands away from my nose," she shot back, well aware his white-tipped fingers had been aimed for her face.

"It's icing, Montana."

"And it gets sticky. I don't want to deal with a sticky face," she scolded, trying to carefully place another gumdrop on the roof of their gingerbread house. This little thing was going to be a masterpiece if she had anything to do with it. She couldn't remember the last time, if ever, she'd made a gingerbread house.

"I have a shower, you can clean off." He was half way through the sentence when he thought about Lindsay using his shower and forced himself not to groan. She'd proposed the relationship and he was happy to oblige her, taking it at her pace. Regardless of how torturously slow it was.

Lindsay laughed. "I would hope so," she responded, blowing an errant strand of hair, too short for her ponytail, out of her face. She smiled brightly when the last gumdrop was in place on the roof and rewarded herself by eating one of the leftovers. Noticing Danny was suspiciously silent, she glanced back at him, over her shoulder. He was simply watching her. "It's not nice to stare."

Startled out of his fantasy land, where this was an everyday occurrence, Danny smirked. "I can't help it." She looked deliciously domestic leaning over his kitchen counter in comfortable-looking jeans and a long-sleeved shirt, her hair swept back into a high pony that still didn't catch all of the wayward curls. She'd long since kicked off her shoes and socks, claiming she hated anything on her feet. By the time he'd made it over her body and back up again, she was blushing bright pink.

"Danny," she whispered, shyly, her blush intensifying.

He took the opportunity of her distraction with his blatant stare to swipe icing over her nose. "Perfect," he said with a grin.

"Danny!"

He laughed, grabbing a paper towel and folding it into quarters. He figured she wouldn't really appreciate it if he removed the icing with his lips and tongue like he wanted. Carefully he wiped at the white spots, grinning the whole time. He hadn't realized he'd stepped closer, nor had he realized her chin was perfectly cupped in his hand. He leaned in, careful to keep her eyes, but stopped before he reached her lips.

_What the hell is he doing?_ Lindsay's mind screamed at her. She didn't move, wouldn't move, too focused on keeping herself upright to do anything else.

He wanted her to close the space between them, wanted to make sure this was what she wanted. When she didn't move to close the space, he redirected, and planted a gentle kiss on her forehead. "All gone."

She shivered at the timbre of his voice, feeling remarkably empty. She stepped back and watched his eyes sadden at the loss of contact. She smiled, the same shy smile she'd given him when she caught him staring. "Presents?"

He nodded, tossing the paper towel he was still holding into the sink. "I think we've sufficiently decorated our house. Now you can teach me the finer, girlier parts of wrapping presents properly."

Lindsay laughed. "There's no finer points, Messer. It's simply creativity."

He followed her back into his living room, watching her plop down by her bags and up-end one onto the floor. "Whose are those?"

She rifled through the objects, pairing mittens together and folding a knitted scarf. "This is the stuff for the team," she finally said, having separated everything into piles for their recipients.

"And yet you say mine isn't there."

"Neither is Mac's. I haven't finished his yet."

"Finished?"

She laughed. "All these gifts are hand-knitted," she explained, watching him lower himself so he was leaning against the bottom of the couch.

One of his eyebrows hit his hairline. "Hand-knitted? You don't know the city that well, where'd you find 'em?"

She smiled at his mistake, carefully tracing the triangle pattern on the mittens in her hand. "I made them."

He looked at the near-perfect stitching, the careful patterning and looked at her dubiously. "You made them?"

Lindsay nodded. "I don't do malls in December and its just easier to make something thoughtful instead of trying to find something to buy."

"So you knit instead?"

She shrugged. "Sewing is too much work by hand and knitting gives my hands something to do instead of just idling about."

"And you've made something for everyone in the lab?" Danny asked, surprise more than evident in his voice.

"No, that's too many people. That's why I had to buy things for people like Marty and Adam."

"You, Montana, are something special, you know that?"

She blushed and he decided he liked that look on her. "Thanks."

To dissipate some of the tension, he rubbed his hands together. "Let's start wrapping."

* * *

_**Okay, raise your hand if you thought they were actually going to kiss? Yeah, that's what I thought, sorry to break your hearts, but I have plans for their first kiss and its not in the middle of Danny's kitchen after he's wiped icing off of her nose.**_

_**I quite enjoyed writing the fluff in this one and probably almost had to get myself an insulin shot from the overdose of sugar, but I loved it. Hope you guys do too!!!**_


	14. Christmas at the Messers

**Chapter 14 **– **December 14, 2006 **

"Hey, Monroe, wait up, I got a favour to ask."

Lindsay slowed her step, on her way to the elevator and down to the morgue. "What's up?"

"My family dinner's tonight and Mom wants to know if I'm bringin' someone with me. You up for it?"

"Dinner with your family, Danny? Christmas dinner with your family?"

"Why not? You got plans?"

Lindsay shook her head. "No, I don't, but—"

"Then why not?"

She pulled him into the empty elevator with her, waiting until the door closed to talk. "This is your family, Danny. Me going to your parents' for Christmas… says things."

"Truth, Montana? They've wanted to meet you for a while."

"What? You talk about me?"

He shrugged, trying to play it off as the elevator descended. "Sure. You're a big part of my life."

"To your family?" Lindsay's voice jumped an octave.

"Yeah to my family, now are you comin' or not?"

"I…I…"

"Good, Ma'll have dinner on the table at six so I'll pick you up at five?"

"Danny, I don't get off until—"

"I'll handle it," he promised, pushing her out of the elevator doors and pressing the button for the lab.

Lindsay rolled her eyes and growled under her breath. That man could be endlessly infuriating!

* * *

Mac had sent her home at 3:30 and Lindsay was pretty sure she hated him for it. She hadn't made an official decision as to whether or not she was going to go with Danny to his parents, but occupied herself by having a shower, doing her hair and spent a good forty minutes in front of her closet trying to pick something to wear. At the end of it, she hadn't found anything she felt she wanted to wear.

Or that's what she told herself.

She was standing in the doorway of her room, looking at the horrendous mess she'd made and a cup of tea in her hand when her buzzer sounded. Glancing at the alarm she saw the bright red numbers read 5:55. The buzzer was probably Danny.

"Hello?"

"You ready to go, Montana?"

"Come up," she asked, buzzing him through the door.

Five minutes later, she'd thrown on a robe and pulled open the door for him.

"You're not dressed."

"I'm not even sure I want to go. I raided my closet and couldn't find anything to wear."

"You have to be kidding me."

Her eyes widened imploringly. "Come look! Cleaning my bedroom is going to be murder!"

He followed her down the short hallway to her bedroom. "Crap, Montana, you really did do a number on this place."

"You're not helping," she growled. She started with her bed, dividing her clothes between what was supposed to go in the closet and what was supposed to go in her drawers.

"Hey, hey, hey," he stopped her, grabbing her wrists gently.

"My family isn't going to care," he told her, making sure to catch her eyes. "You wear what you feel comfortable in."

She eyed him up and down, her eyes finally lighting up. "Go wait out there." She virtually pushed him out the door and closed it behind her.

Danny sighed, making his way back to the couch in her living room. Apparently, something had given her a better idea of something to wear. He only hoped she wasn't going to back out on him. His parents had been getting on him about finding someone to settle down with and, with the apparently temporary pause in his relationship, he hadn't even thought about anything other than finding a way to win her over. When he thought back on it, he realized that, other than Stella, he didn't talk about any other women.

"Sorry, Danny," she apologized as she emerged from her bedroom, doing up a black coat as her curls tumbled around her face.

He stepped out first, waiting for her to close and lock the door before putting a hand on the small of her back, head bent towards her as she started rambling.

* * *

"Daniel!"

Lindsay almost took a step back at the loud cheer that rose through the house as Danny stepped in. She looked up at him, hoping for guidance. He tugged on the collar of her coat and she blushed, unbuttoning it and handing it over to one of the women nattering at Danny in what she could only assume was Italian. Instinctively, she reached for his hand. He smiled down at her, interweaving their fingers.

"Who is this?"

"Lindsay, this is my cousin, Katherine. Katie, this is Lindsay Monroe."

"From the crime lab," Katherine exclaimed. "It's so great to finally meet you. Aunt Maria talks about you all the time, passing on stories from Danny."

Lindsay blushed. Not only was she important enough for Danny to talk about with his mother, but his mother obviously found it important enough to pass on to the rest of the family. He tugged her through a doorway on their left, Katherine following and nattering on behind them

"Ah, my Daniel, there you are."

Lindsay looked up from her feet to find a kind-smile.

"Mom," he said with a smile, kissing both of her cheeks. He then tugged Lindsay up beside him. "This is Lindsay."

"Well aren't you precious."

Lindsay couldn't help the wrinkling of her nose. Precious?

Danny laughed outright, knowing exactly what was going on in Lindsay's head. Not only was she completely overwhelmed with what was happening around her, but his mother had called her precious. Lindsay slapped his arm

"Are you sure this is the Lindsay you've been telling us about?"

Danny untangled his hand from hers to wrap it around her back and pull her snug against him. "Can't you tell from the slap?"

"Ah, you need someone to keep you in line," his mother said with a bright smile. "I'm Maria."

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Lindsay said with a mirroring smile. "He's pretty good most of the time."

"Most of the time he's working."

Lindsay closed her eyes. _Katherine, Maria,_ she told herself mentally before turning to meet the new arrival. If all of these people kept coming up to say hi, there was no way she'd remember all of their names.

"Oh, come on, what is this, pick on Danny day?"

It was Lindsay that stepped in with a response before anyone else could. "That's any day that ends in 'y', Danny. Does today end in 'y'?"

He glared down at her playfully as those within ear shot burst into laughter. "You're supposed to be on my side."

"If I was on your side, you'd think something was wrong with me," she replied.

"Somethin' is wrong with ya if you're bravin' a Messer dinner. And Christmas no less," their still unidentified comrade stated frankly, earning a rather hard slap on the arm from Maria.

"Tony," Maria warned.

"Sorry," Tony replied, though his voice was remarkably unapologetic. "I'm Tony, Danny's cousin's husband."

"He did mention he had a lot of those. Cousin's I mean," Lindsay replied, finally coming out of the shy shell she'd entered in. "Lindsay Monroe."

Tony's eyebrow went up. "The Lindsay Monroe?"

She threw her hands up in exasperation, looking to Danny. "Am I some sort of celebrity?"

Danny shrugged, all innocence. "I didn't know Mom would be tellin' stories, Montana. Come on, let's find you somethin' to drink."

* * *

Lindsay couldn't find Danny. Maria, Katherine and a few of the other cousins and female family members had pulled her aside and she'd lost sight of him. She was on her way through the front foyer when the door opened again and a family of five came in, two young children screaming their heads off and a baby doing exactly the same. Before she knew it, the baby had been thrust at her by his frazzled mother while she dealt, along with the father, with their two other children.

Lindsay moved out of the way, to sit on the stairs, murmuring softly to the infant in her arms. It was where Danny found her ten minutes later.

"Allie said she'd shoved Will off on some unsuspecting woman. I think she figured it was one of the regulars," Danny explained as he sat beside her. "Kids get passed around in this place all the time so the parents just start trustin' their safe."

"In New York?"

"We protect our own, Montana, someone's got an eye on 'em all the time."

She continued to rock the baby in her arms absently, one of her fingers firmly encased in one little hand. "It's loud in here."

"Always has been, always will be. Wait until we sit down to dinner."

Lindsay met his eyes. "Whose Allie?"

"Alexandria, my sister."

"Sister? I thought you just had Louie."

"Biologically, yeah. Allie found us and Mom couldn't let her go."

"You don't talk about her."

Danny chuckled. "Lindsay, you know I'm overprotective of the people I care about. People found out about Allie…"

"I get it," she assured him. "Who knows?"

"Louie, me, my parents and Allie's husband for sure. We all agreed to keep this one mum."

"Is she ever upset about it?"

"Nah. She knows DNA is nothin'. Family's what you make in your heart."

She smiled at him. "You, Danny Messer, are a closet teddy bear."

"Only at home," he told her, the twinkling of his eyes counteracting the seriousness of his face. Then he looked at the picture she made and felt his heart speed up. "That's quite the picture you make, Miss Monroe."

She chuckled softly, feeling heat rise in her cheeks. "Someone will come looking for him soon enough," she said, watching Will's eyes flutter closed then open again.

"I'll go find Allie, see if she's got her diaper bag. His blanket should be in there and we can probably lay him down for a bit."

She smiled as he stood, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. Sure enough, Allie came around the corner not five minutes later, diaper bag slung over her shoulder.

"He out?"

"Thirty seconds ago," Lindsay answered softly, shifting to hand him off to his mother.

"Can you bring him up? I don't want to move him if he just fell asleep."

Lindsay nodded, following Allie up the stairs.

"Danny tells me you're the Lindsay he's always talking about. Montana."

Lindsay rolled her eyes. "Yeah."

"You must really be something special if he's bringing you here."

She looked at the other woman in confusion. "He's never brought a girl home before?"

"His family members are his best kept secret. Christmas dinner is family hell with all of us together. It's one of the rare times we can actually get all of the Messers together in one place. You get the double whammy."

Lindsay's eyes widened. "He said you guys wanted to meet me."

"Oh we did, and let me tell you, the fact that you've impressed Tony and the fact that Mom thinks your Danny's perfect woman, I think you've made a name for yourself."

Lindsay almost sighed in relief as she placed Will on the blanket. "I'm glad. I had a panic attack before coming."

"Andrew almost cancelled on me when he came to meet them. Then he almost peed his pants because Danny was sitting on the couch with his gun and badge clearly visible. When I scolded him about it later he went all innocent saying he had to drop something off for Mom and got sidetracked."

A knock halted any further reply from Lindsay. Danny stood in the doorframe. "If you ladies are done gossiping, Mom's got dinner all set."

* * *

Danny walked Lindsay all the way to her apartment door after dinner that night. She took the opportunity to press a kiss to his cheek that lingered too long to be considered platonic.

"What was that for?" he asked, surprised.

"Saying thank you," Lindsay replied.

"For what?"

She blushed. "For bringing me to meet your family. Allie told me I was the first girl you brought home."

Danny groaned. "I knew I shouldn't have left you alone with her."

"I like her," Lindsay said on a laugh, unlocking her door and opening it just slightly. "You want to come in?"

He did. Seeing her interact smoothly with his family, the way she bantered with Tony fiercely, the way she and Allie got along fabulously and most importantly, how she looked with a baby in her arms almost made him forget that he was taking things at her pace. "Nah, not tonight, Montana." To reassure her, he kissed her forehead tenderly before pressing another kiss to her temple, then to her cheek. "I'll see you in the lab tomorrow?"

"Yeah. Good night Danny. Call me when you get home, okay?"

He chuckled. Sometimes she was as bad as him when it came to protecting those close. "Sure thing. Night."

It wasn't until he'd text messaged her to tell him he was home safe that she folded herself under her bed covers and closed her eyes.

* * *

_**Was anyone else slightly disappointed with the way they handled Lindsay's past last night? I guess that means Anna's still pregnant, huh?**_

_**Anyway, hope you enjoyed. You guys have been fabulous in reviewing. Wish me luck on my exam tonight!**_


	15. Christmas Pagaent

**Chapter 15 **– **December 15, 2006 **

"Messer," Flack called, pushing the door to the break room open. "I need a drink, you up for it?"

"Can't," Danny answered from where he was concocting two cups of coffee. "Got plans."

"Cancel 'em," Flack suggested.

"Can't," Danny repeated. "I got about twenty people dependin' on me to be there. You picked a bad time."

"Twenty people," Lindsay asked, finally speaking up from the table. "I didn't know you had that many friends."

"Funny, Montana," Danny answered, setting the mug down by her elbow. "But seriously, I got plans tonight and I can't break 'em."

"What plans? You got a date?"

Lindsay's head shot up to meet Danny's eyes.

"Not with a girl, nah. Got my hands full on that end." He winked at her and she, as predicted, blushed.

"There a drinking party I don't know about, Messer?"

"Nah, not that either. I gotta be completely sober tonight."

Flack smacked his forehead. "The Night Before Christmas."

Danny smiled. "Yeah."

"What?" Lindsay asked in confusion. She was surprised when Danny blushed.

"I help out at a youth centre and they have a Christmas play every year. This year it's the Night Before Christmas," he explained.

"You're going to help kids with a play?"

"Some of them have stage fright," Danny replied, a subtle dig at her own background.

Lindsay simply laughed. "That's awesome."

"I totally forgot! I promised Sarah I'd be there," Flack groaned.

"Sarah?" Lindsay asked.

"She's the little girl playing the wife. Flack's her hero," Danny supplied.

"A hero, detective?" Lindsay teased. "That's a pretty big job."

Flack chuckled. "Yeah, but with those kids it's worth it."

"Good kids?" Lindsay inquired, looking between both men.

"Kids with good intentions," Danny subtly corrected. "A couple of them have seen the wrong side of our system."

Lindsay nodded, understanding without words what Danny was hinting at. He'd been a kid like that once, but that was all she knew about him. Now he'd do whatever he could to keep that from happening to someone else. "Where is this play?"

* * *

Lindsay stepped into the community centre feeling slightly nervous and more than a little bit out of place. Chairs were set up in rows about half way back and a makeshift stage had been constructed. Blankets were set in front of the chairs and Lindsay realized they were for the smaller children that wouldn't be able to see over an adult head. 

"Can I help you?"

Lindsay spun to find a man behind her, offering a kind smile. "I just need to find a seat, that's all."

"One of these yours?" he asked, making small talk.

Lindsay laughed lightly. "No. I'm here for the big kids." She saw Flack off to one side with a hysterical looking girl and waved slightly. His eyes widened when he recognized her and he waved back.

"Your boyfriend?"

"Colleague. I work with him," she answered, watching as Flack made his way over, the girl still in his arms.

"Monroe, this is a surprise," he said.

Lindsay shrugged. "I figured I'd come see what the big deal was all about. That, and I had no other plans."

"Mr Flack, who is this?"

Lindsay smiled at the little girl and her curiosity. "I'm Lindsay. Who are you?"

"Sarah Grace," she said smartly, nodding her head in confirmation. "My mommy's not here yet."

From the look on Flack's face, Sarah's mother showing up would be a miracle in itself. Lindsay felt bad for the girl. "I'm sure you'll be fantastic," she promised. Then to Flack, "I should probably find a seat."

"I'll help," the stranger jumped in, but Flack was already shaking his head.

"You're VIP tonight. I'm sure Danny'd love to see you here." Shifting Sarah to one arm, he wrapped his other one around Lindsay's shoulders steering her to the front and the stage.

"What are you getting at?"

"Consider this a back stage pass," he decided. "We've got rooms roped off for the kids that aren't on through the whole thing."

She looked at him, an eyebrow raised. "So I come to enjoy what will most likely be an adorable play and you're saving me so I can be on glorified babysitting duty?"

"And risk the wrath of Messer, no thanks. We've got teenagers to handle that kind of stuff that need the money."

Lindsay laughed.

"Montana?"

"Hey," she answered, looking down at her feet. "Flack brought me back here."

"You came." There was an underlying awe in his voice as well as surprise, but the happiness in his eyes made it all worth it.

"Like I told Flack, I thought I'd see what the big deal was about it all."

"It's no big deal. The kids inevitably make a mistake somewhere and someone starts cryin'…"

"That's the appeal of it all, Danny. They're just kids."

"Dan! We've got a problem here," someone called from down the hall.

"Come on," he said, grabbing her hand. A girl, no older than twelve, sat against a wall, knees at her chest, shaking her head empathetically.

"Jordan, come on. We've practiced this a thousand times. You'll be fantastic." A young woman was crouched in front, trying to encourage her.

"I can't do it. The butterflies are too bad," Jordan protested.

"Becky?"

The young woman breathed out a sigh of relief turning to talk to Danny. Lindsay looked at the frightened girl. "Hi there."

"Who are you?"

"Lindsay. I'm a friend of Danny's."

"A friend?"

"I work with him. What's your name?"

"Jordan."

"And what are you supposed to be doing tonight?"

"Singing. But I won't do it."

"Why not?" But Lindsay already knew why.

"I'm too nervous. I know I'm going to screw up."

Lindsay sympathized with Jordan. "What makes you think that?"

"I just am. There's so many people out there and I know my parents can't make it tonight."

"That's too bad."

"It's what they have to do to pay the rent every month," Jordan answered.

Lindsay was surprised, not only at the candidness but at the knowledge. "Do you have any siblings?"

"A brother and a sister, but who knows what they're doing. They don't have time to spend with me."

That almost shot Lindsay's idea to hell. "I have an idea."

"Does it involve me singing?"

"Yes."

"Then no."

"The first time I went to sing I threw up my dinner," Lindsay stated bluntly. "It was a school pageant and I was singing with two other girls. I begged my parents to let me stay home, to say I was sick, but they wouldn't let me. I was so nervous."

"You really did that?"

"I didn't sing unless it was a big group for six years after that," Lindsay affirmed. "I learned that it was easiest to focus on one person instead of looking at the whole crowd. It helped to find my parents or one of my brothers or sisters."

Jordan's face fell. "I don't have anybody out there."

"No, but you have me."

"What?"

"I'll go sit out there. You can focus on me while you're singing. What do you say?"

"You'd do that for me? You don't even know me."

"No, but Danny does. That's enough for me."

Jordan threw her arms around Lindsay's neck and she shifted to accommodate the weight, hugging back.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you."

Lindsay laughed. "Are you going to sing now?"

"I'll try," Jordan agreed. "Where are you going to be?"

"Front row. I'm sure I can figure something out with Danny."

Jordan scrambled back, getting to her feet and smoothing down the dress she wore. "Thank you, Miss Lindsay."

Lindsay stood too, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "It's Lindsay and you are more than welcome."

Jordan moved out of her embrace and tapped on Becky's shoulder. "I'll do it."

Becky turned. "What?"

"I'll do it," Jordan repeated.

Becky pulled her into a hug. "Thank God. Come on, let's get you set up on stage."

Danny looked on in confusion as Lindsay stepped up beside him.

"She's up first?" Lindsay asked, watching Jordan look over her shoulder with a fearful smile. She sent an encouraging one back.

"Yeah. She's good."

"I'm glad. Listen, can you do me a favour."

"Uh oh, Montana."

"It's nothing big, I promise. I told her I'd sit in the front row."

Danny raised an eyebrow. "But you're going to be back here."

"Stage fright trick, Danny. She didn't just decide on her own that she was going to do this."

"You convinced her?"

"You were the one teasing me about my stage fright earlier. It's a trick I learned to keep the butterflies down. You find someone in the audience and focus on them, pretend there's no one else in the room," she explained. "Now about that seat."

* * *

"Lindsay I did it!" Jordan exclaimed, racing towards her when the intermission started. The first half had been singing and carolling by some of the more talented and older kids. The second half, she found out, was the play. 

"You were awesome," Lindsay agreed, catching her in a hug. "I told you it wouldn't be so bad." She shot Danny a wink over Jordan's head.

"Everybody clapped!"

"Everybody loved you," Danny said with a smile.

"You have to come hear me sing more often," Jordan decided.

Lindsay widened her eyes in surprise. "I can try," she managed. "But my job keeps me pretty busy."

"Are you a police officer like Danny?"

"That I am."

"So is Don," Jordan said frankly. "He doesn't come around that often."

"Sometimes it happens, kiddo. Why don't you get back stage and change?" Danny suggested.

"Okay," Jordan happily agreed. "Are you driving me home tonight?"

"Your parents asked me when they dropped you off. Maybe we can get Lindsay to come with us," Danny suggested.

Jordan turned pleading eyes on Lindsay and she knew there was no way she would be saying anything other than 'yes'. "Please?"

"I did take the subway here and I guess it wouldn't be a good idea for me to take it home all by myself…" Lindsay said.

"Definitely not," Danny agreed with more conviction than she'd expected. Then again, he was a cop. He saw what happened to women sometimes when they went places by themselves.

"Then it's decided," Lindsay nodded. "Danny can drive us both home."

"Yay!" Jordan exclaimed, skipping off to change her clothes.

Danny took her hand, using it to pull her closer to his side. "You're really somethin' you know that?"

"I think you've told me that once or twice," Lindsay replied with a smile.

"Well believe it. Becky and I couldn't come up with a way to get her to sing and you stepped in without a second thought."

"I remember those days," she answered with a shrug. "It was no big deal."

"Maybe to you, Linds, but it meant the world to Jordan."

Lindsay blushed. "I'm glad she got to do something she wanted. She said her parents were working and her siblings don't have time for her."

"That's life around here. You're parents work three jobs to pay for the necessities and can't always take care of you the way they want to. That's why the kids have the centre."

"It's a great thing, Danny, really," she said, pressing a kiss to his cheek. "I'm glad I came."

"It's only half over. You ready to watch from the wings this time?"

She smiled. "Sure thing."

* * *

Contrary to Danny's belief, the whole thing went off without a hitch. The play was adorable, as Lindsay expected it to be and all of the children played their roles flawlessly. Or from what she could remember. Her mind had been otherwise preoccupied with the way Danny multi-tasked, getting kids ready to go out on stage and still sticking close to her side through the whole thing. 

"Have you seen Jordan?" Danny asked, catching up to her at the front doors after the show.

"She just ran to the bathroom," Lindsay replied, keeping her eye over his shoulder on said bathroom doors. "She promised me she'd be okay by herself."

Danny shrugged. "There's not many people here who would be willing to kidnap someone else's kid. Most of the time they've got their hands full with their own," he said, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and pulling her close.

She went willingly, wrapping her arm around his waist. "That's a good thing."

"I'm done," Jordan called from a few feet away, stopping when she saw the position Lindsay and Danny were in. "You don't just work together do you?" she asked suspiciously.

It was Lindsay that answered the question. "You know what, sweetheart, we're not entirely sure what that means to either of us."

Danny was impressed at her diplomatic answer.

Jordan just shrugged. "Okay. Can we go now?"

Danny chuckled. "Come on. I promised your parents I'd have you home by ten. Maybe we can stop for hot chocolate on the way home."

Jordan's eyes lit up as she all but skipped out of the community centre.

* * *

Danny pulled up outside Lindsay's apartment building after dropping Jordan off and parked the car. "This is your stop." 

She smiled, a cup of cocoa still snugly held in her bare hands. "I'm glad you let me stay tonight."

"I wasn't about to kick you out of a community centre, Montana," he quipped back.

"That's not what I mean, Dan," she said softly. "It's always nice to see the side of you that interacts so well with kids."

"Don't tell. I can't ruin my tough guy reputation," he told her solemnly, though his eyes twinkled with thanks and appreciation.

* * *

**_So sorry this took so long. When I was at school my stupid internet wasn't working so I couldn't post, though I really really really wanted to. This includes replying to reviews and PMs that kind of stuff. I kind of did get a chance to read anything that was posted though! That was exciting. Anyway, hope you guys enjoy!_**

**_This one got screwed up when I was writing it, and not in the way you think. I had different plans for this chappy, but it developed this way, so this is the way its going to stay! Hope you like it this way!_**


	16. Ice Skating

**Chapter 16 **– **December 16, 2006 **

Danny Messer had developed a theory in the last year about his life: nothing ever went in his favour. With what had happened to Louie and Aiden, plus dealing with Lindsay going undercover and her rejection, he had developed quite the pessimistic outlook on life. It explained his surprise when nothing came up before nine and he actually found himself waiting in the break room, two cups of perfectly made coffee. Now all he needed was his breakfast companion.

She breezed into the room ten minutes later with a bag in her hand. "I would have gotten more creative," she said, pulling bagels out of the bag, "but the lines to most of the higher end places were a mile long. I settled on something simple."

"Doesn't matter," he told her, handing her one of the cups.

She thanked him with her eyes as she took a sip. "You're a hero."

"Because I can remember how you take your coffee? I'm paid to be observant."

She laughed. "That's such a clichéd line," she said.

Danny shrugged, taking a seat beside her on the break room couch and snatching half of the bagel she had spread out on her lap. "It's true."

"Danny! That's mine. You have your own," she admonished with a smile.

"Food tastes better when it's someone else's," he responded solemnly, taking a bite. "And even better when you've stolen it from someone else."

She laughed, going for part of his and let out a surprised yelp when he slapped her hand away. "Not fair," she whined.

"You've gotta be quicker than that to get me, Montana." He almost hated himself for saying that when a mischievous smile blossomed over her face.

"Faster?" she asked, twisting her index finger in one of her curls.

He knew the action was meant to distract him, but he couldn't take his eyes off of her. "Smarter too."

Her bottom lip jutted out in a seldom-practiced pout – though Danny didn't need to know that tidbit of information – her eyes opening wide. She crowed inside as she watched his eyes focus on her lower lip and went in for the proverbial kill.

By the time he'd realized that she'd moved, she was already settled comfortably back in her seat, munching on his bagel. "That was not fair," he told her.

"And yours was? You stole my food when you have a perfectly good bagel there," she laughed. They ate in silence for a few minutes before Lindsay spoke again. "So I was thinking…"

"You're good at that," he interrupted, effectively shutting her up for a few seconds.

"Thank you, but that's not the point. When was the last time you went skating?"

"As in ice skatin'?"

"Yeah."

Danny furrowed his brows in concentration. "You know, I can't remember."

"Do you have skates that fit?" she asked, licking some of the cream cheese from her fingers.

"Probably buried in the depths of my closet," he answered. "Where are you goin' with this?"

"Want to go skating after shift?" she asked bluntly, well aware he preferred the straight forward to the round about subtle.

"You serious?"

She shrugged, trying to hide her nerves. She figured he probably did some skating when he was a kid and with his change in lifestyle, from the dark to a cop, he may have gone skating with some of his nieces and nephews. At least, that's what she was counting on. "Yeah."

He thought about it while he chewed and swallowed the last bite of his breakfast. "You're on, Monroe."

She smiled widely. "Great. This'll be my first time skating again in five years," she revealed.

"Why?"

Lindsay blushed. "I fell through the ice back in Montana."

He looked at her, slightly startled. "Fell through the ice?"

"We used a lake for the local skating. I was there for the lab Christmas party and ended up falling through the ice. I spent a week at home at the insistence of my boss so I could get over the cold it brought. I figure New York can do better than a lake, so I'm pretty safe."

"I'll grab you after shift, kay?"

She smiled. "Sounds good."

* * *

Lindsay looked out at the public rink and couldn't stop the smile blossoming over her face. She'd missed skating, but had never found the courage to actually get back on the ice while she was in Montana. She didn't want to go skating by herself either.

"You gonna put your skates on, Montana?" Danny asked from behind her, already bent over a bench and removing his shoes.

She turned back to him, the grin still on her face. "I'm excited," she said.

"I can tell. You think you'll be able to tie your own skates?"

She laughed. "I'm pretty sure I can handle that much, Messer."

* * *

Danny handed Lindsay a Styrofoam cup of apple cider and took a seat on the bench, his thigh brushing hers. "So?"

"Thank you so much for coming with me to do this," she said, after taking a sip of the warm cup. She'd cradled it between both of her hands.

"Montana, its skatin'. There's nothin' to it."

"That's not the point, Dan. You came with me so I didn't have to go by myself."

Holding his cider in one hand, he wrapped the other around her far hip. "I get a bonus."

She moved marginally closer, cuddling into his side. "Oh?"

"I get to spend time with you," he answered, foregoing a snarky come back and pressing a kiss to her head.

"It's been crazy," she agreed. Sure, they'd had breakfast that morning, but other than that, they'd barely passed each other in the halls. Since deciding that spending time, just her and Danny, wasn't as bad as she suspected, she'd increasingly enjoyed their evenings together. She was almost surprised with how they'd just fit into each other's lives, unconsciously – and probably consciously if she ever decided to tell herself the truth – making room and time for each other.

"Yeah, but we've made it work."

It made her heart swell to hear him say that. "We did. Thank you."

"No need, Lindsay."

Her real name made her shiver. "You know," she started, her tone thoughtful. "It sounds odd when you say 'Lindsay'."

"Odd?" he asked.

"You call me 'Montana' so often, and 'Monroe' in the lab, but rarely Lindsay."

"This a good thing or a bad thing?"

She shrugged. "I have no idea," she promised. "It's just odd."

Danny absorbed and processed that for a few minutes, his hand moving absently on her hip. "You never cease to surprise me, Montana."

She laughed, subconsciously snuggling closer in the cool air of the arena. "Stick around, Messer. There's more surprises in me."

He looked down at her profile. "I plan on it."

* * *

_**Don't ask. It was a rough go, go, go kind of day. I wasn't home with my computer to finish this up. The same is true for tomorrow's chapter, my day is pretty full so I wouldn't expect it until after 11 EST. I'll get it up as soon as I can, but I can only do so much. Now that I think about it, the same might be true about Monday's chapter too. It really depends on how much time it takes me to study for my sociology exam on Tuesday, but that's my last exam so after that, it should be clear sailing until Christmas!**_


	17. Lindsay's Christmas Tree

**Chapter 17 **– **December 17, 2006**

Danny, Becky and a spattering of children and other volunteers wandered through the tree aisles at a tree farm an hour outside of the city. They could have simply bought a fake tree for the community centre, but the more consistent volunteers had decided that it was important for the kids to get a chance to find one of their own. Danny toted an axe as he strolled through the snow.

"I got one!" Danny heard from the next row over. He and Becky poked their heads through the bushes and saw a tree that was perfect in shape, but probably a little bit short.

"Don't you want a tree that's going to hit the roof of the centre?" Becky asked, reading Danny's thoughts.

The kids standing around the tree looked thoughtful for a minute before nodding resolutely and heading off into the trees again. Danny, however, couldn't take his eyes off the greenery in front of him. It really was a perfect tree.

Without really considering anything else, he pulled out his cell phone, hitting her number on his speed dial.

"Monroe," she answered swiftly, sounding slightly distracted.

"You still at the lab, Montana?"

She sighed. "Got a break in my robbery-murder case and Mac figured we should probably work through it. Hawkes agreed and it wasn't like I had anything to do tonight."

He chuckled. "I invited you to come tree huntin' for the centre," he told her.

"I know, I know, but I would have probably been called back anyway. What's up?"

"I am lookin' at the most perfect tree you'll ever see."

"I'm from Montana, Dan, I've seen some pretty spectacular trees."

"This one's perfect."

"So cut it down and take it back to the centre," Lindsay suggested, her tone implying that it was probably the most obvious answer.

"The kids want a bigger one," he said with a laugh. "What about your tree?"

"I work. I haven't had a tree since I moved here."

"It's only one Christmas," he pointed out. "Want one?"

"A tree, you mean? I hadn't thought about it."

"Doesn't answer my question."

She laughed. "I don't know, Danny, when am I ever going to get a chance to decorate it?"

"Tomorrow," he said on impulse. "I'll even help. We have the day, right? We're only on call."

She went silent, thinking.

"Linds?"

"I think I brought my tree ornaments. They might be in storage though."

"In your building?"

"Yeah. I can see if they're there, but I think I'm going to need some new lights."

He felt excitement well in his chest. "You want the tree?"

"You've convinced me, Messer," she agreed. "You going to bring the tree here?"

"I'll be by after we figured out how to get the centre tree up. Do me a favour and tell Flack to meet me? There might be a bit of trouble gettin' it up to your place."

"It can't be that big," she protested.

"It's not, but I ain't carryin' this thing all the way up your stairs by myself."

She could have taken that offensively, but she laughed instead. "I'm not an invalid, you know. I can help."

"Make me feel better, Montana. Plus, this way you can direct us where to put it and you won't have to lift a finger."

She laughed again and he realized he was getting far too attached to that particular sound. "You've convinced me. Call me when you're on your way, okay? I'll probably just have Flack over for dinner."

"Save some for me?"

"Yeah. I'll see you later."

* * *

Flack and Lindsay were laughing when her phone rang. Flack shook it at her and she nodded. "Probably Danny. I told him to call when he was on his way."

"Because you drafted me into working on this tree thing, I know."

The caller ID did say 'Messer'. "Hey," she greeted softly.

"I just left the community centre. How do you want to do this?"

"If you want to buzz the intercom, I'll send Flack down to help you," she suggested.

"You've got everything, right?" he asked, referring more to the tree stand and something that would catch the falling needles.

"I found all of my Christmas decorations in storage downstairs," she promised.

* * *

Lindsay stood leaning against the back of her couch, the tree set up in the corner of her living room, by the window. She chuckled slightly as she remembered the curse words of both men as they manoeuvred the plant up the stairs of her building. It had taken them the better part of twenty minutes to get that far, then they had to contend with the tree stand and moving and balancing the tree.

Danny had even brought new lights and convinced her to let him string them.

"So?" he asked, coming from dealing with the dishes and the containers their dinner had come in.

"What possessed you to ask me if I wanted a tree?" she asked on a laugh.

"Part of Christmas is a tree, right? We always seem to end up here anyway, so I figured your apartment was probably the better one to decorate."

She raised an eyebrow. "You sound like you're planning to spend Christmas here," she said, definitely not all that opposed to the idea.

He pulled her in front of him, facing her and locking his blue eyes on her brown and continuing to hold her hands. "I know we haven't made anythin' we're doin' permanent, but you know I like the time I spend with you and I don't mind takin' this thing at your pace. I'd like to spend Christmas with you if you're not doin' anythin'."

She smiled, tears coming to her eyes. "How do you always know what to say?" she asked affectionately. "Sounds like a deal, Messer. We'll spend Christmas here."

He smiled and pulled her close for a hug.

* * *

_**As per usual, life decided to shove itself in the way of the story, hence the reason that again this is being posted technically on the 18th. I've been working hard to get them up, but I didn't turn my computer on until 8pm EST and didn't start working on the chapter until 9, so I apologize for the lateness of this chapter.**_

_**Again, as per usual, you guys have been fantastic with the reviewing. I was actually and honestly surprised to break the 100 review mark and thus, my day was more than perfect when I found out. You guys have been awesome with the feedback, keep going! Not only does it seriously motivate me to write more, but when you tell me the lines you enjoy and the scenes that make you all warm and fuzzy or the ones that make you laugh, it gives me inspiration for what you like and don't like so I can incorporate them further. **_

_**Hugs!**_


	18. Decorating the Tree

**Chapter 18 **– **December 18, 2006**

Lindsay awoke the next morning to a pounding on her door. Confused and disoriented she opened her eyes, snuggling down into her warm covers. The clock on her night stand read 10:11am. She groaned and rolled over, closing her eyes again, but the pounding wouldn't go away. Then her brain caught up and she bolted upright.

"Coming!" she yelled, grabbing her robe off of the end of her bed and racing to the door in bare feet. She yanked it open to a slightly concerned looking Danny. "Hey."

"What happened? I've been knockin' for ten minutes."

She blushed, pulling her robe tighter around her body. "You woke me up," she explained.

He looked confused. "We did agree on 10, right?"

"We did," she assured him, pulling open her door wider and stepping out of the way so he could come in. "I didn't hear my alarm?"

He raised an eyebrow at her, then took in the room.

"You've got a lotta decorations, Montana."

"This isn't all of them, just a couple of garlands my parents let me bring and all of my ornaments."

He shifted through her box of Christmas balls and other odd ornaments. "You always put your odd stuff up with the other stuff?"

"Those have sentimental value," she answered.

He raised an eyebrow at her.

"That was another Christmas tradition," she explained. "My brothers and I got a new ornament to put on the tree each year."

"So there's one here for every year? Even when you were a kid?"

"From the day we were born. Make yourself comfortable," she suggested. "I'm going to hop in the shower, okay?"

"You had breakfast?" he asked, calling down the hall while she prepared for her shower.

"I just woke up, Dan, what do you think?" she called back, with a laugh in her voice.

"I'll go find some. Try not to zone out in the shower, fair?"

He heard her laugh outright. "Sounds good. Thanks."

* * *

Something smelled delicious when she opened the door to her bedroom, dressed in comfortable, but fitting sweatpants and a long sleeved sweater. Her mouth started watering from the delicious smell and Lindsay followed it to the kitchen. Danny had raided her cupboards for pans, bowls and plates. She rested against the doorway, watching him move around the stove and nearby ingredients.

"Something smells awesome," she spoke up finally.

He turned to face her for a second, taking in her comfortable clothing. "Welcome back to the land of the living. I thought you promised you wouldn't zone out in the shower."

Lindsay blushed. "I didn't mean to."

"What made you get out then?" he asked, though he had an idea.

Her blush intensified. "Ran out of hot water."

He laughed. "Breakfast's almost ready, and I picked somethin' up for ya."

"For me?" she asked, intrigued. "Why?"

"I can't do it just because?" he asked, pulling a plate of perfectly made French toast, out of the oven.

Just as she thought she'd had her blushing under control he went and made her do it again. "You didn't have to."

"I _wanted_ to," he responded, waving with an oven-mitted hand at the already set table and the small wrapped package on her plate.

"You wrapped it to?"

"Somethin' like that, yeah." He'd wondered about picking it up and wrapping it but had eventually decided that since it was one of her traditions – and from what Stella had not so subtly told him about Lindsay working the previous Christmas – he figured it didn't matter.

She slid into her seat, picking up the box and shaking it gently.

"It's not fragile, Montana."

She grinned. "I always shake my presents," she answered. Then she carefully untied the bow on top, unwrapping the ribbon and letting it flutter to the floor.

"Please tell me you're gonna rip the paper," Danny said. "Breakfast ain't gonna stay warm forever."

"So dig in," she returned. "I'll open this at my own pace, thank you very much."

He smiled, something in his heart enjoying the way she fought back and didn't let me walk all over her. He also knew better than to argue with her and piled food on his plate. The next time he looked up, she'd opened the box and was staring at the contents with a soft, affectionate smile. "What is it?"

She lifted the gift from it's cotton by the gold thread it was strung on. "Santa Tigger," she said.

"Figured it represented Christmas, and Tigger's a tiger," he said with a shrug.

Tears welled in the sides of her eyes when the significance set in. "Danny…" She had no clue what to say.

"Like it?" Theoretically, it was a rhetorical question. He'd determined the difference between her happy tears and her sad tears and had since determined that these tears were happy tears.

"I love it, Danny," she said softly.

"Good. We'll add it to the tree when we decorate. For now, tuck in."

They joked around for a few minutes while they ate until Lindsay went serious again. "You know, you've done a lot for me in the last month."

Danny shrugged. "It's not a big deal, Montana."

She shook her head. "It _is_ a big deal, Danny. No one else has ever done anything like this, not even in Montana."

"I just want you to have a good holiday," he said.

She huffed. "Can you stop shrugging this off and listen?"

"I am listening."

"But you're not hearing," she accused.

He stuffed his last bite in his mouth, setting his fork beside his knife on his plate and folding his arms over the edge o the table "All right, you have my undivided attention."

"This, everything you've done, the CD, the tree, the pageant… I haven't had this active of a holiday since I became a CSI."

"Not even in Montana?"

"I came home for Christmas, but I'd inevitably work through something. This… I haven't had a moment of down time since December started and usually, I'd be upset about it. But I'm not. I'm loving it, Danny, all of it. And I've thought about it and thought about it, but I can't seem to remember the reason why I told you we couldn't… that it wouldn't work between us."

Danny shrugged. "You wanted time, Linds, and I gave it to you, I just got frustrated and antsy."

She laughed. "Yes, you did. I'm glad you did."

"So outline it for me Monroe. What are you sayin'?"

She took a deep breath. "I was wrong, Danny. We… we've proven that we could make this work. We've spent every night together and… I can't remember why I said no. You've been here with me and I haven't given you a single reason to…"

"Hey, hey, hey, don't go puttin' yourself down like that. You've given me more than enough reasons to stick around and keep tryin'."

"Like what?" she scoffed incredulously.

"Where do you want me to start? You're damn smart, Montana, and you don't back down and so shoot me but that's a turn on," he said passionately. "You're beautiful and passionate and you do your job like there's nothin' else you'd rather do."

Then he took a deep breath. He wasn't sure if she was going to cry or slap him for the next part. "You try and hide behind some sort of mask that you think proves you're just as good as the rest of us – don't get me wrong, you are just as good, if not better than the rest of us and you're damned strong – and you want to seem like you're unbreakable, that nothin' gets to you because you've been born and bred that objectivity is the Golden Rule.

"You told me in the hall that there was stuff you had to work through and there's nothin' I want more than to help you with that in whatever way you want me to. You keep turnin' down help and companionship an' you're gonna find yourself with friends but no best friends."

Tears were running rivers down her cheeks and she let them go unchecked. "I don't want your companionship," she whispered hoarsely.

Danny was taken aback. "What?"

"I don't want your companionship," she said, louder this time and with conviction and resolve though her eyes were fixed on her lap.

He was royally confused. "Okay…"

She was shaking his head before the word was even finished. "From day one, you've been a royal pain in my behind, Danny Messer, but God damnit I can't just have your companionship."

"Lindsay…"

"I need more."

Now she had his complete, undivided and uninterrupted attention.

"I need the whole thing, the dates, the flowers, the romance…. Everything. I want to be able to have you over because I want to and not just as a friend. I want to keep forgetting why I turned you down in the hallway. I want to know that I'm special." She held up a hand when he opened his mouth, inevitably to tell her that she was special.

"I want the relationship you proposed," she said quietly. "And I want it with you."

Danny closed his eyes as the news sunk in. He couldn't remember how long he'd been waiting for her to say that and he felt the proverbial weight lift off of his shoulders. But he didn't delude himself. He knew that she'd made a huge leap in finally deciding she wanted to see where a relationship between them would go but that didn't necessarily mean she was going to start spilling her guts. "Okay."

"What?" Lindsay asked.

A grin stretched over his face at her surprise and as the thought of a relationship set in. "Okay."

"That's it?"

"Did you expect it to be more complicated?" he teased.

"Actually, yes," she said.

He laughed and stood, holding out a hand for her. "Come on, Montana. I'll dry if you wash."

* * *

Lindsay sat curled against Danny on her couch later that night simply staring at the tree they'd decorated instead of the Christmas special Danny was paying attention to on the television. She hadn't stopped smiling since they'd finished. The tree looked… well, interesting with her traditional coloured balls and her mix and match yearly ornaments. Still, it was theirs, and they'd decorated it together. The one thing Lindsay could remember above all else was the way he'd wrapped his arms around her as she hung the Tigger ornament he'd given her.

"Penny for your thoughts," he murmured.

She met his gaze, her smile still plastered on her mouth. "I'd think they cost more than just a penny," she quipped in response.

"I'd give you more…"

"Just thinking."

He chuckled. "I caught that much. What about?"

"How much I am loving this Christmas," she said honestly. "And how much I love our tree."

Danny shuddered inwardly at the truth of the balsam being 'their' tree but chuckled. "It's unique, isn't it?"

"I'm going to go with special," she answered, snuggling if possible even closer.

He looked down at her, snuggled so tightly against his side. He'd realized that morning, on his trek to find breakfast and a new ornament, that there was very little he would not do for her. There was literally, he realized, next to nothing he would not do if it would make her happy. Instead of being creeped out and scared by the notion, he found himself absolutely content with the idea. He wanted to make her happy, wanted to wipe out the past that she was so terrified of.

And it was going to start right now.


	19. The Nutcracker Ballet

**Chapter 19 **– **December 19, 2006 **

Lindsay woke the next morning with a cramp in her neck and leaning against something. It took her a few minutes to remember where she was and why she was curled against Danny's chest. Apparently, they'd simply fallen asleep.

"Danny," she said softly, bouncing her body in order to shake his. "Time to get up."

He groaned but opened his eyes to look down at her. "You're still here?"

"Actually, that's my question. You're in my apartment."

He grinned lazily. "No wonder it smells like you."

She wasn't sure if that was a compliment or not, but decided to take it as such. "Thank you. Now, you need to go home and get ready to go into the lab."

"You're going to have to move first, Montana," he said, the smirk obvious in his voice.

Lindsay did as he asked, pulling herself up and sitting straight against the back of the couch. "You okay to see yourself out and lock the door behind you?"

"You want me out of here that bad?"

She smiled. "I was telling the truth with what I said last night, I want to work at a relationship with you, but my back muscles are killing me and it would probably be safer that I let the water deal with the aches and pains instead of you, huh?"

He nodded, though filed that away for some other time. He stood, rolling his neck on his shoulders and wincing slightly as it cracked. "I'll see you at the lab," he said in parting, leaning down to press a kiss to her cheek. He would wait to actually kiss her until she made the first move. This relationship was going to completely be done on her terms.

"I'll be there in 20 minutes. Pick up breakfast?" she asked, her eyes pleading.

There was no way he would say no and nodded with a roll of his eyes. "Yeah."

She smiled. "Thanks." Then she was skipping off to her bedroom.

* * *

They were driving to a scene that afternoon when Lindsay broke the comfortable silence. "I talked to Jordan the other day."

"Jordan?" Danny asked.

"The little girl from the Christmas pageant? The one that wanted to sing but was so afraid?"

"You talk to her?"

"Gave her my cell number at the end of the night after the ice cream. I figured if she needed any other advice on how to work with stage fright she could call."

"You talk to her often?"

"Often enough. She likes having a woman in her life I think. It's nothing against her parents but they're working to make ends meet and they're not around that often. She's smart enough to know her sister's probably not the role model she wants…"

"I get it, Linds," he said with a little bit of a laugh. "What did she say?"

"She said she'd always wanted to go to a ballet. Her dream is to see the Nutcracker."

"I'm assuming there's a reason you're brinin' this up."

Lindsay sighed. "I got tickets."

"Huh?"

"To see the Nutcracker, I have tickets. Stella said that a girlfriend had given them to her because she was going to take her sister and her sister's daughter but none of them could make it. Stella passed them on to me."

"I don't do ballets, Montana."

Lindsay sighed. She'd seen this coming and really hadn't gotten her hopes up that he'd be joining them. "I know, but Jordan asked her parents and they said she could go with me."

"So you're tellin' me you're takin' little Jordan to the Nutcracker tonight?"

Lindsay shrugged. "She wants to see it and I think it loses some of its charm when you watch it for the first time when you're older."

"You've seen it?"

"As a kid and only once. I'm sure this will be as awesome an experience for me as it will be for her. I just didn't know what to do with the third ticket."

Danny shrugged. "Sell it to a scalper when you get there," he suggested.

Lindsay laughed at the thought of her, dressed for the ballet, selling her ticket to a sketchy looking man on the street. "Are you sure you want me doing that?" His protective streak was legend and she'd take any opportunity possible to rib him about it.

His nose wrinkled. "Now that you mention it, no. Keep away from 'em scalpers."

She laughed again. "Got it. Do you think you could drop us off though? I'm sure her parents would be much more comfortable if she was travelling with someone they trusted."

"You want me to pick you up too?"

"It starts at seven so we should be done by ten at the very latest. Do you mind?"

"Nah, 'course not."

Lindsay smiled, settling back in her seat, happy and content for the time being.

* * *

_Where the hell did I put my shoes!_ Lindsay was frantically racing through her apartment, looking through the entire apartment looking for the pair of shoes she'd set out before her shower to wear. Her dress was simple, white with a flowing skirt and gauzy sleeves. The shoes she'd chosen weren't heels, but flats. She decided they'd probably be a better bet than heels to try and keep up with Jordan.

The little girl had called half an hour earlier, just to double check that they were indeed going. Lindsay laughed and told her for the millionth time that she didn't have to work and she definitely wasn't going to cancel for anything else. The resulting squeal had Lindsay holding the phone away from her ear.

A knock came at her door and she jumped slightly in surprise. Then she groaned, she still couldn't find her damn shoes! She threw the door opened, double-checked that it was indeed Danny, then returned to racing around her apartment.

"Linds? You okay?"

"I can't find my shoes," she called back from the bedroom.

Danny glanced around the room, finding the toe of a shoe sticking out from under the coffee table. He lifted it and it's partner from under the furniture. "These shoes?"

She poked her head out the door, her eyes zeroing in on the flats he held out for her. "Thank God. I was afraid we were going to be so late picking Jordan up."

"We're good," he said, standing still as she used his shoulder to slide one shoe on. That was when she noticed his attire.

"Where are you going?" she asked, eying the suit up and down.

"To the ballet."

That took her by surprise. "I thought you said you didn't do ballets."

Danny shrugged. He'd gone home for the night – with the exception of picking up Lindsay and Jordan – and realized that spending the night alone suddenly wasn't that attractive. He'd brave the ballet for time with his Montana. "Changed my mind."

"You don't have to do this, Danny, I'm sure Stella's friend won't mind us not using that third ticket."

He held her coat open for her to shrug on and turned her to face him so he could do up the buttons. "I don't have to," he agreed, the implication obvious. "You look gorgeous, by the way."

She blushed. "Thank you, but don't change the subject. I'm not going to make you do something you don't want to, Dan."

"I want to spend time with you. If it means I have to sit through a ballet, then so be it." He had ulterior motives. There was nothing better for him than seeing her face light up, whether it was out of excitement or out of triumph.

"Danny…"

"Humour me, Montana. Let's go pick up Jordan before we really are late."

* * *

Jordan was just as surprised as Lindsay was when she found out that Danny was going to see the ballet with them, and she shrugged it off much faster than Lindsay did. She bounced the entire way through the performance, excitedly squealing softly and whispering to Lindsay. She may have been twelve in body, but the little girl sure wasn't on the inside tonight.

She was chortling happily as they sat for intermission before suddenly declaring she had to use the bathroom. Lindsay and Danny both laughed before the girls left. The old lady beside him leaned over.

"That's a beautiful family you have there," she said. "I remember the times I used to bring my daughter to see this."

"Now you don't?"

The woman shook her head sadly. "She moved away after college. She comes to visit for Christmas, but my husband and I still come to watch it. I wouldn't take what you have there for granted, young man. One day you may be in my position."

Danny smiled. "I'll keep that in mind," he promised.

* * *

Since Danny prided himself on being a gentleman, he walked Lindsay up to her apartment door.

"You know, you being there made Jordan's night," she said, digging in her purse for her keys.

"She's a good kid," he agreed. "I think you've become her hero over this little stunt, Montana."

Lindsay blushed. "She deserved it. Did you see the look on her face when those dancers came across the stage? She looked like there was no where else she wanted to be."

"You made a little girl's dream come true," he told her frankly.

She blushed harder. "I did, didn't I? Thank you for sitting through that. I know you didn't want to be there."

Danny shrugged. "Wasn't so bad and if you tell anyone I told you that, remember, I am a CSI, I can hide your body."

Lindsay laughed at his empty threat. "I won't tell a soul," she promised anyway. Then she smiled shyly. "Good night, Danny."

As he had that morning, and almost every other time they'd said goodbye, he kissed her cheek. "Good night Linds."

She played the happy woman until her door closed firmly behind her. She'd told him she was ready for a relationship, but he continued to hold back on her. She'd figured that those words would have at least earned her a kiss, but she hadn't gotten more than his goodbye kiss on the cheek. Sure, it lingered long enough for her to know she wasn't just a friend to him, but she wanted more.

Stripping down and getting into her pyjamas she flopped on to her bed with a sigh. She wanted him to make the first move, but if he didn't hurry up he wasn't going to give her much of a choice. Shaking her head, she snuggled under the covers and allowed herself to drift off.

* * *

_**Much like the previous chapter, this morphed into something unplanned, but I'm not against the way it turned out.**_

_**For those who are counting…. December 21st is the day Lindsay's hopes come true!**_

_**And a very heartfelt thank you to everyone who has been diligent in reviewing. Most of them brighten my day significantly, even if it's already been a bright day. Hugs to you all and Chocolate Kisses!**_

_**Oh, and how would you guys feel about me starting another story… just a short little thing, I promise! Would you be mad because that means I'm working on 3 stories at once?? Can I lure you in with the prospect of the possibility of Danny being a Daddy? And this one's not the sequel to Family Matters either. I don't believe I've finished posting that one yet….**_


	20. Sleigh Ride

**Chapter 20 **– **December 20, 2006 **

"Empty your schedule for tonight, Montana," Danny said as he nudged against her in the layout room.

She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. "For what?"

"Surprise."

She huffed out a sigh of mock indignation. "Again, Danny? Why can't you just tell me what we're going to do?"

He chuckled. "Where's the fun in that."

She huffed again, pretending to ignore him and get back to the clothing she was processing.

"Montana," he sing-songed, really just to frustrate her.

"Get out, Danny," she said sternly, though the tilt of the corners of her mouth told him he was getting through her 'cold' outer shell.

"Montana," he said again, now really just wanting to get on her nerves.

"I'm not getting anything done, Danny. Get out of here."

"Montana…"

She finally laughed, the exact reaction he was looking for. "Call me later, okay?"

"You're on."

* * *

The next time he talked to her, it was to tell her she had until 7:30 to be dressed warmly and ready to go on the front step of her apartment building. He still gave nothing away as to his plans, but did suggest she eat before going. That was something else that threw her.

She'd opted to stay in the relative safety of the front lobby, not risking Danny's frustration and irritation when she stepped out onto the New York streets. It was something he constantly nagged her about. When she was in Montana, security wasn't always an issue, but Danny had seen all sides of the law and knew how simple and easy it was for a simple civilian to become their next case.

She reached into her pocket for her cell phone as it rang. Danny's number flashed on the screen and she smiled, opening the phone as she opened her front door. "Hey."

"Where are you?"

"Coming out my front door. You?"

"Comin' down your street. You dressed warm?"

"Relatively," she said with a smile.

"Good. We're gonna be out in the cold for a while."

Lindsay looked up at the sleigh bells, almost squealing in childish delight. "Danny!"

Danny hopped down from the carriage as it came to a stop with a huge grin. "You ready to go?"

"What are you doing?"

"Well, remember when we saw the park on our lunch walk?"

"We didn't really see much of the actual park, Danny," she reminded him, no sexual connotation in her comment.

"If I remember correctly that was your fault," he shot back. "Comin'? We're gonna see the park tourist style."

She laughed, taking his hand and allowed him to help her into the sled. "How did you think of this?"

Danny shrugged. "This one was a gamble," he admitted. "I wasn't sure if you really wanted to do this, or if you'd think this was a little over the top."

"There's a million things I still haven't done since I've moved here," she answered with a coy smile. "This happens to be one of them."

Danny laughed as he snuggled in beside her, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her close.

"I like this," she said suddenly, just as they entered the park.

"What's 'this'?"

Lindsay snuggled closer. "Being able to go out with you, spending time together that's not for work…. That kind of stuff."

"Ah."

She looked up at him. "What? That's it? No overtures?"

He laughed. "Linds, I'm not the type for overtures. I tell the truth, but I'm not gonna make an effort."

She raised an eyebrow, though she knew what he was thinking and what he was trying to say. She didn't want him to change either, but she'd have a good time teasing him. "Not going to make an effort?"

He groaned. "That's not what I meant. I worked too hard at this relationship to not want to put in the effort."

It was the little things that counted most and the fact that he'd referred to what they had as a relationship was more than enough for her. She snuggled contentedly back against him. "I know."

He growled, digging his fingers into her side and listening to her answering squeal. "You're a little minx, Montana."

"I have to find some way to keep you on your toes."

"Trust me," he said, pulling her close. "You're always surprisin' me."

* * *

_**I apologize for how short this is, but I had other things in mind… Like tomorrow's chapter with the kiss (I guess it technically could be considered today's chapter….) Anyway, you guys have been so brilliant with reviewing, don't stop now! I'll have my other story up soon, I think……**_


	21. Mistletoe

**Chapter 21 **– **December 21, 2006**

Stella was all but jumping as she accosted Lindsay in the hall of the lab. "Are you excited?" she asked.

Lindsay held back her urge to crack up laughing at Stella's child-like exuberance. "For what?"

"The lab party tonight!" Stella exclaimed. "You can't tell me you've forgotten about it."

Now Lindsay did laugh, something that surprised Stella a bit. "I haven't forgotten, Stel, don't worry."

They were silent for a minute. "What's got you so happy?" Stella asked finally.

"Am I not allowed to be happy?" Lindsay asked, blushing.

Stella shrugged. "It's been a long time since I've seen you smile like that. There something you're not telling me?"

"Don't you think you're being a little nosy, Stel?" Lindsay teased. "I'm happy right now."

"And I want to know why so that the next time you're depressed for a month I can cheer you up," Stella replied logically.

"I don't think you could replicate this," Lindsay admitted.

Stella gasped. "So it is a guy."

Lindsay's blush gave it away and Stella squealed.

"Tell me all about him."

"Montana!" Danny called down the hall.

Lindsay couldn't decide if she wanted to hug him, or throttle him. He was carrying a take out bag. She couldn't stop her expression from turning hopeful. She hadn't gotten a change to scarf something down yet. "Tell me you have lunch," she said as he approached them.

He shook the take out bag at her. "I have lunch. You have results."

"Hydrochloric acid," she agreed, waving the folder in much the same way he'd shaken the take out bag at her, "And trace says it was bleach all over the floor. Adam couldn't get a usable profile."

"Rock, paper, scissors for who's lettin' Mac know?" Danny groaned when Lindsay won, relinquishing the bag to her. "Don't eat mine."

She grinned. "But food tastes so much better when it's stolen," she quoted.

Danny rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. Ten minutes."

"You're on."

Lindsay knew she was in for the third degree and almost wished she'd been the one to lose to tell Mac. Stella was grinning when Lindsay finally looked at her.

"So it is a guy."

"It's nothing, Stella," Lindsay lied.

"That was more than nothing," Stella exclaimed. "He brought you lunch."

"And I bring him coffee if I stop," she replied. "He asked if I wanted something before he left, I said yes. He picked up lunch, I picked up results, it's more efficient."

"No way."

Lindsay chuckled. "You do it with Mac, don't you?"

Stella pursed her lips. Sure, she and Mac picked something up for each other when they were working, but there were other connotations too. They were looking out for each other, making sure the other was nourished properly and wasn't working on an empty stomach. "Yeah but…"

"Exactly. I'll see you later." And she was off down the hall.

Stella's cell phone stopped her from following. Looking at Lindsay's retreating back and then at the direction in which Danny had gone, Stella shook her head. Something was up, there just wasn't enough evidence for her to make a concrete conclusion.

* * *

Lindsay looked up at Danny as he eventually entered their office, already having polished off her sandwich and now going over the test results and evidence, trying to put it all into context. "That took a while," she said, starting to put away all of the pages.

"Yeah. Mac and I started throwin' around theories and you know how that can get."

Lindsay nodded, finally packing up the last of the pages. "I like the sister for this."

"Somethin' about her isn't sittin' right on this one, but I can't see why she'd get involved."

"I think we're missing something," Lindsay responded. "Is the scene still there?"

"Yeah, clean up is scheduled for a couple of days from now," Danny answered, unwrapping and tearing into his sandwich.

"You think Mac would be okay with us going back in to see if we missed something? There's got to be something to tie the sister to all of this."

"I'm sure he'd be fine with it," he replied. "You want me to pick you up tonight?"

"For the party? I can make it here on my own."

Danny read the underlying message. "No one's gonna think anythin' if I pick you up, Montana. It could easily just be that we met up in the lobby."

Stella poked her head in. "Lindsay, you want to come over to my apartment and get ready? We can cab over together."

"Sure, Stel. Give me ten minutes at the end of shift?"

"I get a company car because I'm on call tomorrow morning, I'll wait." Then she was gone.

Lindsay turned back to Danny with a smile. "Now I'm not going by myself."

"Cute, Monroe, really cute."

She chuckled. "I'll make you a deal. You can drive me home."

That was a deal Danny readily agreed to.

* * *

Lindsay looked around the break room with a huge smile. There was something about Christmas that she enjoyed more than anything else and seeing the decorations and the socializing of the people around her, she couldn't help but be happy. Christmas music floated from a nearby radio, though with the equipment Adam was setting up, she wondered how long it would be until they had their own DJ.

"Evenin' Montana."

Lindsay turned and resisted the urge to swoon. Danny Messer looked damn hot in a suit. "Hey Danny."

He gave her the typical once over, taking in her knee length skirt and red three-quarter-length shirt. "You really do clean up nice, Monroe."

"Same to you, Messer," she said with a shy smile.

He wanted to kiss her, had to kiss her, so he pulled her off down the hall. He'd seen one of the lab techs going around the lab hanging mistletoe right before he'd left for the evening and knew the print lab was far enough out of the way and hidden behind enough equipment that no one would see.

"Danny, where are we going?"

Finally he stopped, turning to face her and glancing up. "Mistletoe."

Lindsay looked up at the mistletoe over the door in surprise. Apparently some one had decorated more than just the break room. Then she locked eyes with Danny and smiled shyly.

"It's tradition, Montana," he said, voice low and sending a shiver down her spine. "And there's no one around to witness it." He knew how important her privacy was to her.

"It is," she agreed, shivering as he leaned closer, wrapping his arms around her to pull her towards him. She went willingly, feeling his breath fan across her lips and cheeks. She'd been waiting for him to make the first move for what felt like a lot longer than it had been. Her eyes fluttered closed waiting for the contact of his mouth on hers.

Lord she hoped the lab tech gossip was true.

"Lindsay," he whispered, the word brushing against her skin like a gentle caress.

_Why the hell _isn't _he kissing me?_ Lindsay's mind screamed. With effort her eyes slipped open again and focused on his. She saw the uncertainty in his face and felt the sudden need to slap him upside the head.

"Do it, Messer," she breathed, tilting her face further as she stepped impossibly closer.

He didn't need more encouragement than that. He'd meant for their first kiss to be gentle because she deserved gentle and perfect, but her small gasp fought with his control. Instead of the gentle kiss he'd wanted, his tongue delved into her mouth, open from the gasp. His hands cupped and angled her head, his fingers threading through the curls she'd so carefully pinned back, effectively dislodging the clip and sending her hair cascading down over her cheeks.

She pulled away to take a breath before attacking him again, her mouth pushing and massaging against his, giving as good as she got. She let out a squeal of surprise when her back hit the glass wall of the nearby lab enjoying the feel of his body against hers like the day in Central Park.

As he slowed their kiss down, aware they were still in the lab and anyone could come walking down the hall looking for them, his mind was screaming at him. Why the hell had he waited so long to do this? Had he known how well she kissed there was no way he'd have kept himself from jumping her sooner.

"God, Danny."

He chuckled, his hands sliding over her shoulders, forcing her to drop her arms to let him finish his journey. However, once he reached her hands he brought them back to his shoulders, placing his around her back, a thumb stroking against her spine. "Not really."

"Cute," she replied, settling more comfortably into his embrace and crossing her wrists behind his neck. "Remind me again why we didn't do this sooner?"

He laughed for a few minutes before sobering. "We're gonna take this at your pace, Montana. I'm not gonna do anythin' you don't wanna."

"And that's why you waited so long to kiss me?" she asked, both affronted and touched. "I've been waiting forever for you to do that."

His grin turned to a smirk. "Forever, huh? So that whole thing about not wantin' a relationship was a lie."

She blushed and smiled. "Look, I… At that particular moment, I was telling the truth. I wasn't ready and I thought that I had to work things out on my own. When I thought about it, I thought about… about what you'd been through and I… I decided that since I wanted to be there for you, I had to let you be there for me. What this has become…" She shrugged showing her inability to put what she was feeling into words.

"I wanted to make sure this was what you wanted," he replied, waving his hand between them. "I want to make this work."

She tilted her head towards his, brushing her lips gently across his. "I adore your white knight streak, Danny, but you can't just wait for me. I trust you and I trust that if I'm uncomfortable with something I can tell you."

"You've done a good job of that up to this point," he teased gently, kissing her again.

She chuckled. "It may take me a while to tell you, Danny, but I will."

"Mmhmm," he agreed against her mouth. "So kissing you is okay?"

She smiled. "Yeah. It's okay."

"Good."

* * *

Lindsay stood leaning against her door that night, after Danny had walked her up to her door and kissed her again, remarkably and completely content. Sure, she was scolding herself for not noticing how his heroic streak extended to his carnal needs, but she couldn't help but be happy and excited with how the night had turned out.

Stella had given her a knowing look when she and Danny walked back into the break room again and she blushed bright red. Stella knew there was something. She could only hope that they weren't as transparent to everyone else.

Oh who was she kidding? She wanted those gossiping lab techs to know he was hers, at least for the time being. She wanted to outrageously flirt with him in the office, to always forget why she'd turned him down in the first place.

Finally she had her knees under her, supporting her enough to stand and make her way across the room. A knock startled her. Since she'd just said goodbye to Danny, she couldn't think of anyone who would be knocking on her door. Looking through the peep hole, she threw the door open again with a playful smile.

"I thought you were going home," she said.

Danny gave her a crooked grin. "I was."

"Does this look like your apartment?"

He pulled her to him, nothing sexual about their embrace, just one of comfort. When he pulled back, he kissed her forehead. "Okay, now I'm really goin'."

However, it had Lindsay worried. "Danny? You okay?"

His smile put her at ease again. "Linds, I'm perfect. I just wanted to hold you for a minute."

Lindsay sighed, propping herself against the doorframe as Danny stood just outside. "You know, for the lab gossip about you as a bad boy, you're certainly not keeping with the rumours." It wasn't that she had a problem with the way he was acting, it just surprised her. He was turning into a teddy bear and though she knew he cared, she'd never seen him like this.

He shrugged noncommittally. "I was walkin' down the stairs, reflectin'… I just thought about how happy I was and about Louie and Aiden and Flack and…"

Lindsay hugged him again, cuddling her head under his chin. "I know."

"Do you know how scared I was when you decided to go undercover?"

Lindsay, who had closed her eyes and sunk into his warmth, opened them again. This was a road they had yet to go down. "I did what I had to do."

"I know that, and I'm not sayin' I'm not proud of the work you did, but I was petrified you weren't gonna come out."

She'd known Danny had been on the other side of the wire while the whole thing was going down but she'd had no clue about the depth of his fear. "I did."

He chuckled. "Yeah, you did. Then you turned me down, then Christmas came around, and here we are."

She pulled away and kissed his cheek. "That we are. You going to be okay now?"

"Yeah."

She smiled, pulling away completely. "Good night again, Danny."

He kissed her softly. "Good night, Linds. I'm glad you came out alive."

Then he was gone.

* * *

_**I have no idea what happened with this one… Seriously. The end morphed out of control, but I have to admit I liked it. **_

_**More importantly¸ I hope you guys enjoyed their kiss. It won't necessarily mean they dive into anything, but I'm sure there will be more in the last 4 chapters. Oh, now I'm upset because there's only 4 chapters left to write.**_

_**And someone asked for more of the team so there's more of Stella!**_

_**Oh, and my goal is to hit 200 reviews for this story. I have no reason to think I won't, but please leave one and help my ego!**_


	22. Rudolph and The Grinch

**Chapter 22 – December 22, 2006 **

December 22nd turned out to be a nasty, cold, damp day. The worst part was that Danny had been stuck processing when it started to pour sleet and looked more like a wet monkey when he stepped onto the floor of the lab. Lindsay had processed and inside scene with Hawkes and Mac and looked concerned when he stepped into the layout room he was going to apparently be sharing with her.

"You okay, Dan?" she asked softly, pulling a tape lift off of where she'd stuck it.

"Cold," he answered glancing at his watch. "You think Mac'll let me go home in an hour?"

Lindsay chuckled. "You're probably stuck for about three. I'll make you a deal though."

"Shoot away, Montana."

"I'll help you with those, once I finish with mine, if you come over tonight."

"Wait a second, what am I givin' you?"

She smiled. "The pleasure of your entertaining company," she answered.

He lifted an eyebrow. "Don't know if that's much payment on my side."

"Fine," she said with a roll of her eyes. "You pick up dinner."

"Now you've got a deal."

Lindsay nodded once in confirmation before digging into her pocket and withdrawing a pair of keys. "This is yours."

He inspected the key carefully. "You stole my keys?"

"No. Those are to my apartment complex. I figured you could probably use them more and this way I know there's somebody out there with them just in case I lock mine inside or forget them somewhere."

* * *

Danny knocked on Lindsay's door, out of manners. He could smell something deliciously chocolate wafting from the apartment on the other side. The door opened and there stood Lindsay, looking extremely comfortable in track pants and a tank top.

"Hey," she greeted, taking the bags from his hands. "You could have just opened the door."

"My ma taught me manners."

Lindsay rolled her eyes. "I gave you the key for a reason, Dan."

"Yeah, yeah. Listen, I grabbed my change of clothes from my locker, but I'm still feelin' horribly wet. You mind if I borrow your shower?"

She shook her head. "Go right ahead."

Fifteen minutes later, Danny stepped out of the shower and into his clothes, meeting her in her living room by the tree. She'd turned out the lights, the only illumination coming from the television and the lights of the Christmas tree. He grinned as he met her eyes. "If you wanted us to be alone in the dark, Montana, you just had to ask."

She chuckled, but blushed. "It's better to watch movies in the dark."

"You had somethin' planned?"

"I was going to watch the Grinch and Rudolph and I was going to do it with or without you, I just figured I'd extend the invitation," she answered, though she handed him a mug.

Upon first sip, Danny determined it was cocoa and not coffee. "The homemade recipe you told Stel about?"

She was surprised. "You remembered?"

"Of course I remembered. I'm paid to be observant, why wouldn't I remember?"

Her fingers played with the handle of her own mug. "It's so insignificant."

Danny chuckled. "Linds, I've learned that nothing with you is insignificant."

Lindsay blushed again. "Come on. I think dinner's still at least a little bit warm."

He sat right beside her, so his thigh was pressed gently against hers even with her feet tucked under a Christmas blanket beside her. "You know, if my feet get cold I'm going to expect you to share," he said, tugging on the edge of the blanket as she cued up the movies. He was surprised to note that both were VHS tapes.

"If you have cold toes, it's your fault and you sharing my blanket will just make my feet cold," she shot back, though she knew she'd be sharing if he asked. Well, whined.

"These are the old school movies," he quipped as she pressed the button to fast forward through the previews at the beginning.

"Of course they are. I've had them since I can remember. I brought them with me."

"So this is another Christmas tradition then?"

"You'd better believe it. I missed this last year," she answered, pressing play. Then she snuggled into his side, her mug cupped in her hands and food within reach.

* * *

By the end of How the Grinch Stole Christmas Lindsay was fast asleep. He'd laughed at her a few times because he caught her saying the lines along with the narrator on the screen. They'd shifted during the movie so his feet and hers were side-by-side on the couch and she was cuddled in his arms. Her head rested on a cushion by his heart and his was propped up on his elbow to see the screen. He shook her gently as the final lines of the movie finished.

"No," she murmured, awkwardly rolling over and pressing into him more.

Danny chuckled. "Movie's over, Monroe. We've got a little bit of cleaning up to do."

Her eyes blinked open slowly and she tilted her head back to look up at him. "Over?"

"You fell asleep."

She blushed and groaned. "I must have had a more exhausting day than I'd thought."

He chuckled and pressed a kiss to her forehead. "Let's clean up before Rudolph. I'll take care of the garbage and plates if you'll make me another mug of your chocolate."

She grinned, stretching to kiss him quickly before throwing the blankets off of her legs. "You're on, Cowboy."

He followed her into the kitchen with their plates in one hand and the bag of take out containers in the other. She set about opening and closing cupboards, taking ingredients out and setting them on the counter. They moved around each other without making harsh contact once, the same way they moved around a crime scene and the lab. Lindsay smiled as she looked over at him, elbow deep in soap suds.

"What's up, Montana?" he asked without looking at her.

She shrugged and turned back to the milk she'd set on the stove. "Just thinking."

"Again? You've really gotta get outta that habit, Linds."

She laughed. "Why is that?"

"It gets pretty dangerous to be thinkin' all the time."

"Reflecting a better way to say it?" she asked, putting her pot on a separate burner and moving to dry the few dishes he'd already washed.

"I tried that once…" He wasn't sure if he wanted to have a serious discussion with her. He knew he'd been the one to lose his cool last night and come back to her apartment just to hold her. It was out of character, but he couldn't help himself. Sometime soon they would have all of the serious conversations they needed to, but on the second official day of their relationship, seriousness could be put aside.

She chuckled. "You're standing at my sink, doing dishes with soap up to your elbows and I'm boiling milk on the stove." She shrugged. "It's comfortable. We don't run into each other."

"We never do at the lab either," he pointed out, watching the water spin down the drain as he rinsed his arms of the suds. He felt more than saw Lindsay shiver beside him. "Cold?"

She shook her head. She'd watched him brush and wash the suds from his forearms and felt the brush creeping up her cheeks. It had always been like this, but she'd usually been able to suppress it. Now he was in her space, looking like he was made to be there and she knew he was as hot as hell. "Ready for Rudolph?"

He grinned at her. "You're on, Montana."

* * *

_**Part of me feels it's cruel to leave you here because I could go through how they watch Rudolph, but I like it where it is, so I'll apologize instead. You guys have been really awesome about helping me reach my goal of 200 reviews, thank you. I'm only 19 away with 3 chapters to go and I'm pretty confident you guys can make that!**_

_**Actually, I lied. Because of popular demand, and my own love of this story arc, the story will be extended to New Years, and then the sequel will pick up from there. So I guess there's technically about 10 more chapters…**_

_**For those who have been reading Family Matters, it's done. I'll start posting the sequel after Christmas Day since it's all written. **_

_**Finally, and again, thanks so much for reviewing. They never cease to put a smile on my face.**_


	23. Sharing Secrets

**Chapter 23 – December 23, 2006**

Sometimes, she hated her job. The running around from scene to scene, from tech to tech left her completely wiped by the time the end of her shift rolled around. She groaned when her phone rang in the locker room. "Monroe."

"I'm tired."

His voice still brought a smile to her face, though she could hear the exhaustion in his tone. "Me too."

"You have any other movies to watch?"

"Inviting yourself over?"

"Deal with it. Anythin'?"

"I might be able to find something in the depths of my collection," she said, unable to be honestly offended by his cocky and forward attitude. The fact that she liked spending time with him and enjoyed the way they'd been handling their relationship went unacknowledged.

"You on your way out yet?"

"Just in the locker room grabbing my stuff. I think I have something left over for us to eat in my fridge."

"Good. Meet you in the lobby in ten. I've got an SUV from the scene I was just at."

"I can help you bring up evidence," she offered.

"Figure I'll shove it off on some rookie. I've got important places to be with important people."

Lindsay was thankful no one else in the lab was there to see her blush. "Ten minutes it is," she agreed.

* * *

After there warmed dinner, Danny built a fire in her fireplace, a rarity in New York apartments, he let her know. They sat in front of it, leaning against the couch. Finally, she looked up at him, away from the mesmerizing colours of the flames. "You're worrying me, Danny," she said softly.

He looked down at her, noting the blatant concern in her brown eyes. "Why is that, Montana?"

"After the lab party you came back just to hold me. Not that I didn't enjoy it, but that's… not you."

"You think you know me that well?"

"I know I do," she replied. "I want what's best for you Danny, you know that. Flack, Aiden…Louie," she choked on the last name and felt him tense against her. "They're still worrying you."

"Of course they are," he agreed. "Aiden's dead."

"But Flack's alive and well, and Louie's still breathing at least…"

"He woke up," he corrected gently. "They've still got him in the hospital, but he woke up about a week back."

It made sense with his sudden need to reflect. "Okay, so Louie's awake. I just… I don't like seeing you carrying all that pain."

She was so incredibly sweet and caring and he had no idea what he'd done that she was now in his arms. "And what about you? Stella told me about how you reacted to those girls in the morgue."

"I'll be okay. I had flashbacks to Montana, that's all."

"Stel said you were cryin'. I think that's a little more than a flashback."

She looked back at the fire, unable to meet his intense gaze. "It's part of those things I told you I still have to work though. I really thought I'd put that all behind me."

"Tell me," he encouraged.

She took a deep breath. "I don't know if I can, Danny. It's still painful to think about, let alone telling someone else."

He had to make a decision. To ask her to give up her deepest darkest and most haunting secrets on her own was asking a lot. "I'll trade you one story for another," he offered.

She wove her fingers in his. "You have a story, Messer?"

"Everyone has a story," he agreed. "Rumours have some truth to them."

Lindsay wasn't stupid. She had a pretty good idea of what Danny was referring to. "So Danny Messer really is the bad boy every one thinks he is, huh?"

"Was," he corrected. "Everyone gets caught up sometimes."

"And you wanted to be just like other male members of your family," Lindsay said with understanding.

"This is my story, Montana, you can't interrupt."

She grinned unapologetically. "Sorry."

"There's part one of my story."

"I came from Montana," she said. "I had to get away because being there was too painful."

"Family?"

She shook her heads. "Not the biological ones anyway."

He nodded. "Tell me the whole thing."

She took a deep breath. "There's not much to tell, really. I survived a crime," she said with a self deprecating laugh. "I was the only one."

"And?" Danny asked, though he had a good idea where she was going. He'd only ever heard of survivor's guilt and had never experienced it face to face.

"Why was it me? It could have been any of the other girls."

"What happened?" His hand was running softly up and down her spine.

She would never be able to put into words how much that comforted her. "It was my last year doing my bachelor's degree," she started. "I was living off campus with a couple of my friends. I'd gone grocery shopping to stock the fridge. When I got back, I remember the feeling of being shot twice and the window breaking. The next thing I remember is waking up in the hospital. My parents had to tell me they were gone and…I just… I wanted them back."

He pulled her closer to his side. "It wasn't your fault."

"Some of those girls had more of a future than I did, so much more. It could have been someone else…"

"Is it wrong to say I'm glad?" he asked softly, nuzzling against her neck.

"While I'm telling you a serious story, yes," she said. "I wish I knew why the guy did it."

He now understood her preoccupation with Vackner. "Linds…"

"I know," she said. "What about Louie? He saved you."

Danny shrugged. "I figured for years that he kicked me out because he didn't want me, because he was disappointed with me. To know that he did it because he cared the same day he ends up in the hospital… it was a lot to handle."

She nodded against his shoulder, trailing her fingers along his forearm. "Then what happened with Aiden and Flack…."

"Icing on a terrible cake," he agreed. "Aiden was my best friend. You have no idea in the last couple of months I've wanted her around for a female perspective."

She looked at him in concern. "Why?"

"Well, Montana, we may be where we want to but a couple of months ago I sure wanted her advice on how to get ya to pay attention."

Lindsay smiled. "You always had my attention, Danny."

In pure clichéd fashion, they looked at each other, growing closer and closer until Lindsay's eyes fluttered closed in anticipation. His lips touched her softly, pulling back and never deepening the contact. She took it happy to just be sitting with him like this, able to touch and kiss him like she wanted.

"You know, Montana, I think we've been a little serious for the Christmas season," he said when he pulled back. "Movie?"

She nodded, slowly untangling herself from Danny and standing.

He caught her wrist as he stood, pulling her back to him for a moment. "I'm glad you started to share, Lindsay," he said softly, pressing a gentle kiss to her forehead.

"You know, if you keep saying and doing these sweet little things I'm going to come to expect it," she replied, through the harshness of the remark was lost in the twinkle of her eye.

"With you, everythin's gotta be right," he told her softly. "No screwin' up."

She tugged on his hand until he lowered his head enough so she could comfortably touch her lips to his. "Things happen, Danny," she whispered. "I know you'll try and I'll try, but we're bound to drive each other crazy eventually."

He _really_ didn't like the pessimism of her statement and pulled her to sit with him on the couch. "Listen, Lindsay this is one of the few things I don't wanna screw up. Sure, we've been dancin' around this thing for a while, but how long is a while? Eighteen months is a long time to be avoidin' a thing."

Her eyes widened at her admission. "Danny," she breathed.

He smiled slightly. "I was pretty damn jealous of that tiger."

Lord, she hated it when he made her cry. "This is way too serious," she whispered through her tears.

He chuckled, wiping the moisture with his thumbs. "Raincheck on that movie?" he asked.

"Okay…" she agreed, her forehead wrinkling in confusion.

"I'm tired," he tried to explain. "If I don't get home soon it'll be too dangerous for me to drive."

"So stay," she offered, surprising herself at her own brazenness.

"No offence, Montana, but the last time I slept on your couch I had aches for a couple of days."

"So sleep in the bed," she said with a shrug.

"I'm not makin' you sleep on the couch in your own apartment."

"You won't," she assured him, already pulling him down the hall. "We're both adults, we don't have to do anything other than sleep."

His resistance was fading fast and he was pretty sure he was too tired for anything other than sleep anyway. "You'll set the alarm so I can get back to my apartment and change?"

She nodded. "Promise, cross my heart."

He was too tired to argue anymore.

They were both asleep when their heads hit the pillow.

* * *

_**I hope this didn't turn out as awkward by the end as I thought it might have been. See, I tend to do my best writing at around 1am when I'm dead tired so I was falling asleep as I was writing the whole sharing part and when I woke up to write this morning, forgot what I'd wanted to do. Note to self: just finish first!**_

_**You guys have been so awesome with the reviews. Thank you so, so much, especially since this and Family Matters were my first shots at anything DL related. You've been… over the top.**_


	24. Christmas Eve at the Lab

**Chapter 24 – Christmas Eve, December 24, 2006 **

"Explain this to me again. Who commits a crime on Christmas Eve?" Flack asked grumpily, meeting Stella and Lindsay in the break room. "I thought we had gift exchange plans for Monroe's place."

Lindsay sighed. "So did I, but three dead in a mall on Christmas Eve takes priority." She wished with all of her heart it didn't.

Mac joined them ten minutes later, interrupting their whining and complaining over the stupidity of humans. "Results?"

"Nothing's in yet," Stella answered. "We considered tossing around theories but got a little preoccupied. Why are we here again?"

"Because someone or some one's murdered a bunch of people in the middle of a mall on Christmas Eve," Lindsay replied, her tone bitter. "I want to be at home right now."

"We all do," Mac responded. "Look, I'm going to have to call Hawkes and Danny back from that robbery I sent them on. Three is too much for us to handle without more help."

"You don't have to call them both back," Stella protested.

"If we want to look at getting out of here at any decent hour, we're going to have to take all the help we can get."

"Mac Taylor, you mean to say you have plans that aren't paperwork?" Stella asked incredulously.

Lindsay and Flack chuckled. Stella was the only person who could get away with being that impertinent.

"I do things on Christmas," he protested.

"I'm the only one without my gifts here," Lindsay spoke up. "If you talk to Danny, can you ask him to bring them?"

"He has your keys?" Stella asked, interest palpable in her tone.

Lindsay blushed. "I gave them to him when he brought my tree."

"Did you really?" Stella replied, sure that there was another reason for Lindsay to be giving Danny a set of her keys.

Lindsay rolled her eyes and turned her attention back to Mac. "Please?"

* * *

Danny came into the break room, his arms filled with brightly wrapped bags and packages. "Did you get somethin' for everybody, Montana?"

"Something like that," she answered with a smile, relieving him of some of his burden.

He followed her to the tree in the corner, Hawkes not far behind with another armful of gifts. "Somethin' like that? Who'd ya miss?"

"Well, your gift isn't here," she revealed sheepishly.

"What?"

Lindsay shrugged, looking over his shoulder at Hawkes. "I couldn't have you carrying your present all the way here," she lied. She turned her attention to the things in Hawkes' arms.

"Montana, that's not fair," Danny whined.

She chuckled. "Sorry, Dan"

He continued to grumble under his breath.

Lindsay waited until Hawkes was gone and they were alone in the room. "I…I figured we could exchange ours… tomorrow. If you're still coming over for Christmas," she said softly, blushing bright red.

That changed his mind completely. He had to admit he'd rather give Lindsay her gift when it was just the two of them. Glancing around to make sure no one was about, he pressed a quick kiss to her lips. "You've got yourself a deal, Monroe."

She smiled brightly, helping him with the rest of her gifts and putting them under the tree.

* * *

It was eleven before Sid, Stella, Mac, Marty, Adam, Hawkes, Flack, Danny and Lindsay sat in the break room, gazing at the overflowing underside of the tree.

"I must admit, if I do have to work on Christmas I do believe I would prefer to be doing this with all of you," Sid said happily, delving into the gifts and pulling one out. He turned it over to Stella.

"Sid!" she exclaimed with a huge grin as she pulled out a light blue box. "Tiffany's?" It wasn't but she loved the pair of pearl earrings anyway.

By the end of the exchange of Secret Santa gifts there was still a bunch of brightly wrapped presents under the tree. It was Lindsay that approached the left over gifts. "There's one for everybody," she said, starting to hand them around. She gave Adam, Marty and Sid theirs to open first, since they were the bought ones. It was the knitted and hand-made ones that were closest to her heart. She carefully gathered those in her hands, waiting until Marty, Adam and Sid had finished unwrapping theirs before slowly handing Mac his.

The scarf that fell into his hands had jaws across the room dropping. "Where did you find this," he asked, inspecting the knitting carefully.

Danny couldn't help the proud smile that skittered across his face when she blushed and mumbled.

"What was that?" Stella asked, admiring the scarf along-side Mac.

"I made it," she repeated. She was bright red.

"You what?" Hawkes asked in awe as she placed a gift in his hands.

"Made it. Knitted it."

"You had that much spare time?" he asked, carefully removing the tape and finding a similar scarf, though his was knitted a deep green colour instead of black and grey.

She shrugged. "I made them pretty early,." She was still bright red and couldn't seem to get her face to cool down at all.

Stella squealed when she pulled out three pairs of knitted mittens, one white, one red and one black. "These are fantastic," she gushed, wrapping Lindsay in a tight hug.

Lindsay blushed again. "It was nothing." She handed her last package to Flack.

"These are so well thought out," Stella protested. "It must have taken you forever to come up with these."

"My mom and I used to knit all the time," Lindsay explained, watching apprehensively as Flack pulled the paper off of his gift.

"These are hand-knitted?" he double checked, looking over his own scarf.

She nodded, only slightly embarrassed at the repetitiveness of her gifts. She figured Stella would be the only one appreciative of mittens, and she hadn't wanted to knit anyone a sweater.

"What about Danny?" Stella asked.

For the first time in her life, Lindsay hoped her blush hadn't died down, that way she could attribute it to the gifts and not to the fact that she was about to lie. "I haven't finished it yet."

Stella nodded, unable to find any loopholes in her argument.

Mac cleared his throat. "Is there anything we can do in the next six hours?" he asked.

Everyone shook their heads.

"Then get out of here," he said. "I'll give you a call tomorrow when we need you."

They didn't need to be told twice. The break room was cleaned of garbage and empty in record time. Danny held Lindsay back in the locker room. "We still on for tomorrow?"

Lindsay nodded, considering for a moment. "You could just stay at my place. It would save the commute in case Mac really does call us in." Inside, her stomach was flipping. She'd taken a chance inviting him to stay again and she knew it.

"You know what, Montana. That might be a good idea. Saves on how early I'll have to get up to make it to your place."

It also meant she didn't have to take the subway home at almost midnight and she was thankful for that.

It was forty minutes before they stepped into Lindsay's apartment and checked the clock.

* * *

**_Lordy. I'm hoping this doesn't seem rushed and I'm hoping you'll bear with me about Lindsay and Danny's presents, and I'm hoping you won't kill me about not knowing who Lindsay got for her secret santa or what she got… Don't shoot me, okay?_**

_**And have a good holiday to everyone, with a special Merry Christmas for those who celebrate.**_

_**Oh, two more things. 1) Prepare your toothbrushes. Christmas Day is going to be fluffy like cotton candy. 2) December 29-30 are not going to be pretty days, you have been warned. Those days you might need to go eat chocolate, but I promise they'll have a happy new year!**_


	25. Lindsay and Danny's First Christmas

**Chapter 25 – Christmas Day, December 25, 2006 **

_12:15am_

Lindsay sighed. She'd wanted to be asleep by eleven, out of habit rather than anything else. Her focus on the clock and depression about being awake at midnight had made her forget Danny was behind her.

"Merry Christmas," he whispered in her ear.

She groaned. "I wanted to be home an hour ago," she said softly, glancing at the brightly wrapped boxes under the tree.

"These things happen, Linds," he replied, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and following her gaze. "You want to open those now?"

She shook her head. "It's not Christmas morning."

Danny chuckled. "Montana, it's after midnight."

"Semantics," she shot back with a wave of her hand. However, she couldn't stop the tell-tale tilt of her lips.

"So we go to sleep for a few hours, then wake up at four to open presents?"

This time she laughed outright. "You're such a child."

"I'm excited. I saw everything you gave the team and I'm a little curious as to what you've made me," he answered, nudging her.

"You're still acting like a five-year-old," she said with a yawn. "Bed?"

"I'll take the couch," he agreed. "Just point me towards blankets and pillows."

"We're not having this argument again, Danny. I'm not going have you sleep on the couch and you won't let me. We slept last night."

Danny sighed. "You know you're gonna be the death of me, right?"

It took a few seconds for her tired mind to catch up to his innuendo. Then she smiled shyly steeling her courage. "You think it's any easier for me, Messer?" She watched his jaw drop and giggle. He knew she could hold her own, but she'd never allowed him to see that she wasn't just an innocent little country mouse. "But I really am tired."

"You and me both, Montana. Come on, you can have the bathroom first."

* * *

Danny was shaken awake just after half past nine. He rolled over with a grumble to find Lindsay standing over him, a mug in both of her hands. "Coffee?"

"You couldn't have waited another half an hour?" he groused, accepting the mug and taking the first sip in bliss.

"And have Mac call half way through opening presents? Not a chance. You were the one that wanted to open presents last night," she pointed out. She grabbed his hand and tugged on it, telling him to hurry up.

"I'm comin'," he grumbled, through a smile blossomed over his face at her childish impatience. Apparently he wasn't the only one that was childish at Christmas time.

"Faster," she urged with a grin, almost skipping to her couch. Now that she was awake, she noticed the sheer number of gifts under the tree. "Where did these come from?"

Danny shrugged. "My ma sent you somethin'," he started. "An' some of these are mine."

"From who?"

He shrugged again, trying to throw it off as not a big deal. "Allie, some of my aunts and uncles."

"You normally spend Christmas morning with family?" she asked, suddenly feeling bad that she'd stepped on his traditions.

"I prioritized this year, Montana, and you hit the top of my list. Allie won't mind that I'm not there this year and the rugrats opened their presents from Uncle Danny when we were there for dinner."

"Danny…" she said softly, shaking her head. "You have traditions…"

"And I'm startin' new ones. Now you were happy just a minute ago, so let's focus on openin' these before Mac calls, huh?"

He stepped around her, aiming for the tree and the stocking he'd hidden behind the tree when she asked him to bring over her gifts the previous day. He couldn't imagine his immense luck when Mac had relayed her message. He'd brought his gifts along, hoping and anticipating her invitation to stay with her again, being a little presumptuous if he was completely honest. Mac's call gave him the perfect opportunity to bring his gifts in and place them under the tree as well as the stocking he'd brought for her from his family. Stockings were his Christmas tradition.

She was sitting on the couch with her mug of coffee. "We always opened stockings first at home but since I don't… Danny, what's that?" She'd caught sight of the bright red and green object he was trying to hide behind his back.

"Stockin's were always traditions with my family too. Ma sent this over for you," he answered, presenting the red-and-green plaid sock to her.

Lindsay knew her face was complete and utter surprise and awe, but couldn't find a way to remedy that. The fact that she could feel tears prickling the corners of her eyes and burning her throat didn't affect her and she jumped when Danny bent down to wipe them away.

"You're crying on Christmas."

She sniffled. "You have no idea what this means, Danny," she whispered. "You've… I've done everything in New York that I would do at Christmas in Montana and you…. You made it all happen and I don't know how and I'm not sure why but you did and now you're mother's sending me a stocking like she knew exactly what my traditions were and you're sitting beside me and I… it's so overwhelming."

He smiled. He'd been wondering what he'd say to her if this occurred, but the small gift wrapped in the tree would probably make her outright cry and he was willing to wait until he gave her that to pass on whatever speech he could come up with for the time. "Which one are you gonna open first?"

"Stocking. Your mother gave you yours too?" She'd noticed the other stocking in his other hand.

The presents dwindled little by little as they tore off paper one by one revealing clothing, practical household items and knick-knacks. Lindsay laughed at the childish glee when Danny ripped off the paper on the Lord of the Rings trilogy, and laughed even harder when he defended against the perceived 'nerdy-ness' those movies brought to mind. Danny returned the favour when she opened a photo album of pictures from Montana including four pages dedicated to wheat fields.

Finally two gifts were left, hers in the tree and his underneath.

He approached the tree first. "Since I opened the last one, it's your turn," he said.

"You open yours first," she protested.

"I was always taught to be a gentleman, so ladies first."

"You've never been a gentleman, so you first," she shot back teasingly, sticking out her tongue.

"Just open it, Montana."

She took the beautifully wrapped gift gingerly in her hands, carefully and meticulously opening the gift and playfully sticking the bow on the side of his head. Finally she looked at the object she was left with. Her fingers shook as she pried open the lid.

"Danny," she gasped. Inside was a charm bracelet, seemingly simple but so much more complex. There were already charms on it, a tiger, a football, a wheat stalk, the Statue of Liberty, the state of Montana and the state of New York, a Christmas tree and a star and Lindsay felt tears absolutely flow down her cheeks and she did nothing to stop them. "Danny."

He'd rendered her speechless, something he knew was a rarity. She always had something witty to say, something that kept him on his toes. "I lied to you, Lindsay," he said softly, smiling reassuringly when her head snapped up, apprehension in her eyes. "I told you I only wanted drinks and laughs, but I lied. I don't want just drinks and laughs, the same way you don't just want my companionship. I know what the gossip is and I know things aren't going to be easy because we both have issues in the past that are bound to come back, but I want to make this an exclusive and at least semi-permanent thing. We have more than attraction between us and we both know it. I was telling the truth when I told you I'd take this at your pace, whatever that may be, but I don't want to be sittin' on the fence with you. I want you to know what I want and I want the whole enchilada."

She was almost sobbing at this point and he'd made her open his gift first. All she could do while she untangled her thoughts was to hold out the bracelet and her wrist. He grinned, pulling the silver from it's cushion and gently fastening it on her wrist. She was completely blown away when he didn't just drop her wrist, but pulled it to his mouth, pressing a kiss to her pulse point.

His was the last one under the tree and she tearfully handed it to him before wiping at her wet eyes with her shirt sleeve.

He opened the paper slowly, keeping some sort of contact with her at all times, whether it was a thigh, a knee or a shoulder. He carefully inspected the fabric-covered book before flipping it open to the first page. When he did, he did a careful skim of the rest of it. "A scrapbook?"

She nodded. "Allie and I were talking. This is from her as much as it's from me."

"You conspired against me. That's why my mother was so serious about gettin' you this stuff." His voice was soft and hoarse, his throat burning. No one had ever gotten him anything this thoughtful and he knew that she'd picked everything about it. "How did you do it?"

"It took a lot of time and effort," she admitted. "I'd already started it with help from Stella and the team, especially Flack after the bombing. With everything that happened, I wanted to make sure you had a book of memories…"

He flipped to the pages about him and Aiden and she took his hand. "…The good and the bad."

Danny put the scrapbook on her coffee table, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her onto his lap. His lips crashed down onto hers and he could taste the salt of her tears on her lips. His started flowing as they deepened the kiss. She was the one that pulled away, snuggling closer to his side as she did.

"Thank you, Danny.," she said softly. "This is the best Christmas I've had in a long time."

"Anything for you, Montana," he responded, kissing her temple, forehead, cheek and then her lips again.

It was only then the full effect of that statement hit her. He'd shown her he would literally do anything for her, anything to make her smile and laugh and feel like she belonged in New York.

"Breakfast?" he proposed. "I thought I saw pancake mix around somewhere."

She grinned, holding his hand tightly as they made their way to the kitchen.

* * *

_**Please excuse me while I go brush my teeth. I actually enjoyed writing this chapter in the car on my way home from my relatives. I tried to make it sweet, while still sticking to the slow movement of their relationship.**_

_**I do think Lindsay would have guts to make him a scrapbook, especially with everything that happened with them, regardless of the state of their relationship. I also think Danny would be thoughtful enough to put all of those things on her charm bracelet. Let me know if there's any charm meaning you didn't get but remember to sign in or leave an e-mail so I can get back to you!**_

_**Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to decide a few things to keep this going. If you guys have something you'd really like to see happen between them let me know. These 7 chapters (okay, 5 because of 29-30) are for you guys. I do have a couple of ideas for New Years, especially since they didn't have a formal Christmas ball. How many want to see what I can come up with for a formal dress for Lindsay?**_


	26. Defining the Relationship

**Chapter 26 – Boxing Day, December 26, 2006 **

She knew she was humming as she ploughed through her paperwork, but she really didn't care. She was happy and she was allowed to show it. They'd made breakfast together Christmas morning and had made it half way through eating before Mac called. It surprised them both that Mac hadn't called them in before hand. Lindsay had cornered Stella and given her the third degree before she'd found out the test results had interrupted breakfast between Stella and Mac – apparently a Christmas traditions since Claire had died and Stella didn't have any family to speak of – and they figured there was no point in calling anyone else in until later.

Stella would never know how thankful Lindsay would be.

She'd debated that morning when she'd gotten out of bed how to wear her bracelet. As corny and cheesy as it sounded, she wanted to keep it with her at all times, a little memory of Christmas and the season that had changed the entire essence of her relationship with Danny. So far, she'd had no reason to take it off. It fit snugly and so she really had no reason to take it off since it wasn't getting in the way.

Even with the lack of scenes to process, she'd been racing all over the lab, a day she hated above all else. All she wanted to do was to relax in a hot bath with bubbles and a glass of wine. She stepped onto her floor with a tired sigh, breathing in some sort of delicious scent. She figured the sweetheart three doors down was busy cooking something for his girlfriend. When the smell got stronger as she approached her apartment, she was forced to rethink her analysis.

She unlocked her door, breathing in the delicious scent with closed eyes. Garlic?

"Hello?"

"Montana."

She smiled, dropping her coat and purse where they were and headed to the kitchen. "Are you cooking?"

"As stereotypical as it is, spaghetti," he answered with a smile as she moved to stand behind him.

It suddenly hit her how domestic this was, how nice it was to come home and find him in the kitchen. She like it, loved the intimate feel but there was no way she'd allow herself to get wrapped up in it. She'd learned that things she was blessed with, could just as quickly be taken away. She sighed lightly, using his shoulder as support as she kissed his cheek. "What for?"

"I can't just cook you dinner?" he asked, looking down at her.

"Mmm," she murmured, leaning her head against his arm.

"Tired?" he asked, resting the wooden spoon he was using against the side of the pot and stroking the back of her head.

"I shouldn't be," she responded, groaning softly when his fingers wove into her curls and started massaging the back of her head.

"What did you do today?"

"Ran more tests than I'd ever like to admit. I know that's a big part of the job, but if I see the GCMS one more time in the next twelve hours, I might break it."

He chuckled as he turned, wrapping his arms around her completely. "Stella cornered me in the break room and asked if I got you somethin' for Christmas," he said conversationally.

"And?"

"I evaded her questions. We haven't decided if we're tellin' anyone yet. The last thing I wanna do is get you mad at me when we haven't even gotten a week into this."

She sighed, wrapping her arms around his waist and resting her ear just over his heart. "I don't know what I want to do."

Unlike her, Danny had put lots of thought into who they should tell. His conclusion? "I was thinkin' we keep this to ourselves for a bit."

She nodded against him "Sounds like a good idea."

"You just didn't want to make the decision."

She chuckled. "I want this to work as much as you do so I want to make sure we're doing things that we agree on."

"You didn't want to tell anyone, did you?"

"No. It took us so long to get to this point…"

He agreed, pressing a kiss to her head. "This should be ready, you wanna sit down?"

"I'll set the table."

* * *

"You don't mind me crashin' your night, right?" Danny asked as he stepped into the kitchen again after dinner.

She'd insisted on cleaning up since he'd cooked. "Of course not, Danny. I'd tell you if I wanted to kick you out."

"Does that mean I get a kiss when I tell you I started a bath and I'm gonna head home?"

She looked up sharply. "You don't have to go."

"As much as I appreciate the offer, Montana, you're exhausted and before you deny it, I know you, I can tell. Take a soak, I'll call you tomorrow morning before I head out so I can pick up breakfast, fair?"

"No way. I'll pick up breakfast and meet you in the office," she returned. "You cooked for me, tonight and I'd cook you breakfast but we both know the chances are slim. I'll pick up breakfast."

He wasn't stupid enough to argue with her tired, even if it meant he could physically take her. "Fine, Monroe. Now, go take advantage of the hot water, I'll finish up here."

"You cooked, I clean," she repeated. "But stay until bathtime?"

He chuckled. "Of course. You wanna tell me more about your day?"

"I told you everything," she said on a laugh. "What about you?"

"I missed you." Her reaction was the one he was looking for and she blushed.

"You saw me."

He waved his hand in dismissal. "We're through the watchin' at a far and worryin' stage, Montana."

Her blush intensified at the implication. "So you don't watch?"

"I admit to anythin' and you're gonna pounce on me."

Putting the last dish to dry, she unplugged the sink and pulled her gloves off. "Bathtime."

"I'll see you for breakfast tomorrow?" he asked unnecessarily.

"Thank you, Danny," she said, pressing her lips to his.

His hands immediately came to press her closer, one at the small of her back and the other back in her hair. He loved her hair and loved it even more when she left it down. She allowed his tongue when it pressed against her lips and settled her own hands on his hips, allowing him to take whatever he wanted before she started fighting back.

"I don't know if I want that bath anymore," she whispered when they pulled away..

He made a strangled sound in the back of his throat. "Don't tempt me. Go soak and call me before you go to bed, okay?"

"Sometimes, Danny, you worry too much. I'll talk to you later."

He pulled her close again, his kiss chaste and sweet. "Goodnight, Monroe."

"Good night Danny. Thanks again for dinner."

"Anytime."

* * *

_**Crap. You have no idea how often I rewrote this. I had almost no ideas for what they could do especially since the Christmas season is over. Maybe Danny should take her dancing tomorrow, what do you think? I bumped forward the two angsty chapters, because Stella is going to take Lindsay shopping. And January 1st will be the first chapter of the sequel. What I'll do is post 2 versions of the sequel, the M-rated one and a T-rated one that doesn't have all of the sexual situations in it. I'll let you know more of the details as the sequel gets closer.**_

_**Oh, and has anyone else had trouble with the review and chapter alerts? I haven't gotten any for the last two days….**_


	27. Dancing on Date Night

**Chapter 27 – December 27, 2006 **

_Date night. Pick you up at 6._

That was all she'd gotten from him since she'd woken up and it was driving her completely nuts. As he was apt to do, he gave her no hints, no idea and nothing to use to decipher where they were going or what they were doing. It was utterly infuriating.

"Lindsay, you okay?" Hawkes asked, nudging her slightly.

"Frustrated," she answered honestly.

"Because of what?"

She smiled softly. "I'll figure it out."

Hawkes waited patiently, knowing that it was a matter of time before she burst if she was truly frustrated.

"Why do guys insist on being a pain?"

He chuckled. "So Stella was right."

Lindsay groaned. "You talked to Stel?"

"She mentioned something about a guy. How is this guy frustrating?"

"He'd not telling me anything," she said with a sigh. "Apparently I'm going on a date tonight, but I don't know what we're doing, or where we're going or what to wear."

"Ask him," Hawkes suggested

"Last time I tried that, he would only tell me it was a surprise."

"Try again." He felt bad because there really wasn't anything else he could tell her.

Lindsay sighed again, snapping off her gloves. "You okay to finish up? You just have to wait for the results."

She was gone before he could reply.

* * *

Lindsay opened her apartment door at Danny's knock dressed in a flowing skirt and a lacy top. "Dancing?"

He grinned, giving her a not-so-subtle – in fact, pretty obvious – once over. "You do clean up nice."

"That's all you ever say," she said with a laugh. "I'd think a smooth guy like you could come up with something more creative."

"Then you'd think I was getting sentimental," he quipped, taking her hand and forcing her to spin in a circle. "You are gorgeous."

She finished the spin with a flourish and a smile. "Let's go, Cowboy. You owe me dinner first."

* * *

He held the door for her as they stepped into the club he'd chosen for their night. It was smaller than she'd thought it would be simply because she expected him to take her to a place that was more familiar to him. She was forced to correct herself when the bartender and some of the obvious regulars waved as they passed. They sat in a shadowed booth at the back, side-by-side instead of across from each other.

"I thought you said we were dancing," she said, though she snuggled against his side.

"We will," he promised. "Stella said the two of you used to do this all the time before…"

"Before the Zabo case, yeah. Then things got chaotic and busy…."

The fact that she was playing with her hands told him there was more to it than that. "I figured this would be a good break."

She laughed. "I've had a huge break since the beginning of December. It was a weird holiday season."

"Weird?"

"In a good way," she promised with a coy smile. "Now what about this dancing." Her feet were itching to move to the sensual Latin beat pounding throughout the bar.

He grinned at her impatience, holding out his hand. "Can I get you to dance, Miss Monroe."

She returned his grin. "Why, Mr Messer, I never thought you'd ask."

He'd never been so thankful his mother had pushed him into learning to dance as much as he did now. For years she'd pressured him to take lessons and to work with some of the more able members of his family. She felt that all of her boys should be able to dance a woman around the floor when the need arose. As Lindsay fell quickly into step with him, following his lead and his rhythm without taking her eyes from his he made a mental note to call his mother and thank her.

Lindsay was focused completely on him on the movement of his body against hers. He was the first partner where she didn't have to completely concentrate on his movements. The slightest pressure on her hand or waist and the look in his eyes had her responding to every move he made without second thought. When his hand slid further around her back, she immediately stepped closer, her skirt brushing against his pants. The next time he spun her out, he adjusted to pull her even closer, their hips pressing against each other. It was going to take a lot of restraint so as to stop herself from ripping his clothing off when they stepped through the door of someone's apartment.

And all of a sudden that was all she could think about. His chest pressed against hers and her hand rested on his shoulder, feeling the bulge of his muscles as he moved. It took strength not to swoon. His biceps were defined even under the button-down shirt he'd chosen for the evening. Her fingers itched to make a journey down his front. She ruthlessly stomped it down.

They hadn't gone past the kissing stage and she knew he was taking things at her pace. Since she wasn't exactly sure of her emotional stability, she'd held off on any sexual part of their relationship with the exception of the mini-make-out sessions they'd both enthusiastically participated in. Until she was sure of her emotional stability she'd wanted to keep sex as something special.

"You okay, Montana?" he asked, noticing her far off expression.

She grinned as he spun her around again, adjusting so her back was pressed against his front, her arms cross on his over her stomach. "Fabulous," she answered truthfully. "Thank you for doing this."

He pressed a kiss to her neck, feeling her body shiver against his. "Doin' what? I'm dancin' right along with you, Monroe."

"Yeah." She just enjoyed the feeling of his body pressed against her back.

* * *

Work was going to kill them both the next morning. They hadn't stepped out of the club until well past one in the morning and it took forty minutes to get back to her apartment.

"Come up?"

"Some other time," he promised, a promise that turned his eyes a dark, clear cobalt.

Heat swamped her face and spread to her extremeties. The kiss she pressed to his lips was not chaste or restrained. "Good night, Danny."

He chuckled. "Tomorrow, Montana."

He made sure she got into her apartment before giving the cabbie his address.


	28. The Bad Case

**Chapter 28 – December 28, 2006 **

He hated this.

The worst part was passing her in the hallways. She'd been animated and happy over Christmas, even in the following couple of days – something he liked to take credit for, even if it wasn't him – but he'd been there to witness the moment it all started to collapse. What scared him the most was the fact that he'd never seen anyone deflate that fast.

The last time he'd seen her that day was when she'd lost her temper at a poor lab tech and Mac had sent her home. The entire team knew this case had gotten to her, but only Danny knew why.

* * *

_**Flashback**_

_From the second Danny walked into the apartment complex he knew it was going to be a bad scene. Hawkes, Lindsay, and Stella were all crowded around Mac, anxiously anticipating the moment they could start processing. Flack approached at the same time Danny did._

"_Four dead and blood everywhere," Flack said, his eyes the only give-away to what he'd just experienced. _

"_What do we know?" Mac asked._

"_Veronica Shutun came home to the apartment she shared with four of her 'class sisters' from Julliard to find the scene. Neighbours heard the scream and called us."_

_Danny stiffened. It was that moment all of the light left his Montana's eyes and he bitterly watched it go. He debated telling Mac to pull her, but figured that betrayal would be worse than any mistake he could ever make. For now he'd let it slide, but she was naive if she thought he wouldn't be watching her carefully._

_**End Flashback**_

* * *

She'd processed the scene on autopilot, collecting, bagging and tagging all evidence meticulously. Even Mac had commented on her thoroughness and she'd politely thanked him.

Back at the lab things started to go downhill. Fast. She didn't stop to eat or drink, didn't break from going over pictures or statements, clothing or evidence. She talked to no one, not even Danny and not even when prodded. He'd stepped back when she'd almost taken his head off for offering to pick up something to eat.

The blow up at the tech was the last straw.

He gave Mac the excuse of needing a break to rest his eyes, surprised when Mac agreed and suggested they all go home for the night so they'd have fresh eyes for the next day. Again, the thought of telling Mac to pull Lindsay from the case crossed his mind and again he dismissed it. He'd talk to Lindsay before pulling a stunt like that. He was stupid sometimes, but not suicidal.

He knocked gently on her door at first, getting more and more worried when she didn't answer. Finally, he resorted to the key she'd unceremoniously presented him with and stepped into her apartment. He breathed an unconscious sigh of relief when he heard the shower in the bathroom going, and knocked on that door too. The door gave way under his hand and he carefully pushed inside.

"Lindsay?" No nicknames or teasing was going to work here. She was hurting.

"Go away, Danny."

"Not a chance, Monroe. I'll go to the corner store to get whatever comfort food you think you might need, but there's no way you're going to handle this by yourself." He'd made a promise to her on Christmas Day to stick by her side and to make sure she never had to battle back her demons on her own. Now was the perfect time to prove he was serious.

"I'm fine, Danny."

"You're not," he said, only loud enough to be heard over the running water. "I made a promise to you and I intend on keepin' it."

"I just want to be alone."

He sighed. Honesty was always the best policy, even if it could get him slapped. "Do you know how many times I considered tellin' Mac everythin'?" His tone was conversational as he propped himself up against the bathroom sink. "I figured if he knew he'd pull you off the case for sure and you could concentrate on somethin' else that didn't hit so close to home."

"I'm fine," she repeated, though he could hear the tremor in her voice.

"You're not fine, Lindsay. No one could see a scene like that and say they were fine. I'm sure Stella, Hawkes and Mac are out somewhere gettin' themselves completely hammered. Pictures like that haunt you."

She would know better than anyone else. "I know."

He ran a hand through his hair like he had a million other times that day. "I want to be there for you but I can't if you're gonna keep pullin' back.."

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Then don't, I don't care, I just don't want you to deal with it on your own." He was fine with whatever source of comfort she decided on, so long he was still here for her.

Finally she poked her head out from behind the shower curtain, red, puffy eyes more than visible to his investigative eye. "There's no way I can get you to leave?"

"Not this time." He would stand by her, through thick and thin and comfort her whenever she needed it knowing she would do the same for him. This time, it was her.

"Wait outside?"

"I'll meet you on the couch."

* * *

It took Lindsay half an hour to make it to the couch and Danny had a good idea that she'd spent at least fifteen of those minutes bawling her eyes out into her pillow. Her normally expressive eyes were dull and lifeless, their rims puffy. She thrown her still wet hair back in a clip and thrown on a pair of pyjama pants, a tank top and an old Montana sweatshirt. She stood at the end of the couch farthest from him.

"I'm tired, Dan. I think I'm just going to head to bed."

"Nuh uh. Sit."

She sat.

"Comedy or drama?" he asked, flipping through the channels of her television.

"If we're just going to watch TV I'm going to bed," she said the words coming out harsher than both of them knew they were meant.

"You go to bed you're going to have nightmares," he said stubbornly. "Comedy it is."

"Damnit Danny! What the hell do you want?" She wasn't angry at him, they both knew that. She wasn't actually angry that he hadn't listened and stayed in her apartment instead of leaving her alone like she wanted. Instead, the deepest part of her was glad he was here beside her. She watched his shoulders slump.

"I want to be able to make everythin' better," he said finally. "I wanna make sure you never cry and I wanna make sure that if you're going to cry you have someone to lend a shoulder. I wanna be a pillar of support for you like you were for me with everythin', but I can't do that if you won't let me. This is uncharted waters, Monroe, and I have no clue what to do."

She'd gotten so used to shutting everyone else out, pretending that there was no one who could possibly understand what was going on in her mind, but here was a man – for there was no other reason for him to be sitting on her couch wanting nothing more than to give her the moon and more – who was at a complete loss as to how to help her but was there nonetheless, willing to just be there, even if he couldn't help. Tears slipped unbidden down her face again. "I want it all to go away," she whispered tearfully. "I want to pretend this case never happened and that Veronica Shutun isn't going to be wracked with guilt over not being there. I want the pictures of the past and the ones of the present to stop overlapping each other and just get out of my head."

He tugged on her arm until they were side by side, though nothing more. "Do you wanna talk to Mac? Get off the case?"

She looked affronted. "No!"

"I'm sorry," he apologized immediately. "I just don't wanna see you in this much pain."

She whimpered and it was all the signal he needed to pull her across his lap, situating her where her head was pressed into his neck and shoulder and his arms were around her, holding her tightly to him. He felt the tears soak his collar and didn't say a word. She ended up falling asleep right there, crying until exhaustion took over. Danny carried her to bed, stripping down to his boxers and tank and getting in beside her. He would be there to soothe all of her problems away.

He couldn't think of anywhere else he needed to be.

* * *

_**I might have forgotten to mention moving these chapters up one…. Let me know if you like this one just as much. And here's to hoping they fix the alerts soon!**_


	29. Missing Danny

**Chapter 29 – December 29, 2006 **

He was exhausted but couldn't fault anyone other than the murderer of four university girls. Women, he supposed. Lindsay had cried herself to sleep six times the previous night and vomited four out of those six from all of her sobbing. He'd given her an ultimatum: call in sick or get off the case.

She'd argued of course and they'd almost experienced their first drop down drag out fight but eventually, she'd conceded. It wasn't a victory on his part at all. He didn't want to see her in pain and certainly didn't want her to experience the same night again. _He c_ertainly didn't crave her thrashing or tears. Eventually they'd both calmed down, talked it out like mature adults and she'd finally seen where he was coming from. Eventually she'd decided to do both, take the day off and remove herself from the case.

Danny had been proud of her and told her she could plan whatever she wanted to do that night. She'd texted him twenty minutes before the end of his shift and told him to wear a suit and unlock the door when he came.

Whatever the woman wanted, she was going to get.

He climbed the stairs to her floor, sliding the key in the lock and opening it to delicious smells. "Lindsay?"

"Kitchen," she called back.

He found her wearing a dress of deep green, though her feet were completely bare. She was at the stove, stirring something. "Montana?" Then he realized what he'd said and quickly apologized.

He would never know how much hearing her nickname on his lips soothed her. "I need it," she answered softly.

He nodded, not giving any other indication he'd heard her. "What did you do today?"

She waved around her apartment and he noticed the immaculate surfaces. "Cleaned, did laundry, cooked."

"Kept busy."

The smile she sent him touched the corners of her eyes. "Someone kicked me out of the lab."

"You needed it," he said solemnly.

Now that she'd experienced the day, she had to agree with him. "I did. I missed you though."

He smiled. For her, after everything, it was a pretty big admission. "I missed you too," he responded, the words slipping out much easier than he'd thought.

She set the spoon on the counter and approached, not so subtly giving him a once over before stepping into his arms. "You always look so good in a suit," she whispered, holding him tightly.

"Green really is your colour," he responded with a cocky grin. "Definitely a way to keep a guy interested."

She chuckled. "Pants are more practical for work," she said. "Dinner's in ten. Did you get any closer to the…" She was glad she'd turned back to the stove and he couldn't see her close her eyes in self deprecation. She couldn't even talk about it!

His arms wrapped tightly around her waist and stomach, his chin dropping to her shoulder. "We're waiting on DNA to confirm but we've got a pretty good idea of who it might be. He wasn't that careful."

Lindsay closed her eyes again, breathing deeply and trying to calm her raging heart. "They never caught the guy. I never got to ask him why he did it," she whispered, opening up just that little bit more.

"So you became a CSI," he finished, things falling into place for him.

She nodded, leaning her head against his. "I'm sorry for yelling at you."

"I mighta done the same thing in your position," he answered honestly. "I knew you weren't mad at _me_ you were mad at the _case_."

She shook her head, her curls brushing his ear. "You're too good to me," she whispered. "Thank you."

"No need," he said kissing her cheek, "but you're more than welcome."

* * *

_**Sorry this is so short, but I liked where it ended here. This is kind of the up-beat end to the previous chapter. You guys have been awesome, thank you. Tomorrow (or today?) is Stella and Lindsay shopping.**_

_**However, I would like to let you guys know that with the lack of DL in the episodes and the lack of new episodes until January, my motivation is waning. That, and I'm on a Wicked kick since seeing the musical. I'm planning a story for that and trying not to make these chapters seem half-assed. I am so incredibly sorry if you feel they aren't up to my usual writing calibre. As soon as I get Wicked out of my system, I should be good again. Either that, or we get a half decent DL episode when they come back!**_


	30. Gala Shopping

**Chapter 30 – December 30, 2006 **

"Lindsay!"

She startled, spinning on her heel in the middle of the lab hallway to face Stella. "Where's the fire?" she asked, seeing the flash in Stella's eyes.

"We're going shopping."

Lindsay's eyes widened. "What?"

"We're going shopping. You need some retail therapy and I don't have a dress for the New Year's Eve Ball." In actuality, Danny had asked Stella to take Lindsay to do something girly. With Lindsay's reaction to their case and the unhappiness he'd mentioned, she was all to willing to take the girl shopping to relieve some stress. It always worked for her.

Lindsay groaned. The ball had completely slipped her mind. "I forgot."

"Exactly. Drop those files and grab your stuff. We have some shopping to do."

* * *

"Stella, I give up!" Lindsay exclaimed as she sat down on a bench in yet another mall. Stella had dragged her, she swore, across the entire city looking for the perfect dress for the Ball and had so far come up empty handed. Lindsay had looked, though not hard, and found nothing she liked. There was something else at stake for her too: Danny.

She didn't wear dresses often. As she'd mentioned to Danny, they just weren't practical for the job she did. Theoretically, any dress would have worked, but Lindsay had other things in mind. He'd seen her green dress she'd worn for the opera, the white dress for the Nutcracker and he'd seen her in a dress last night, and so, she wanted something she was sure would knock Danny off his feet.

"You can't give up," Stella retorted, then she sighed. "Why is this so hard?"

"Are you looking for something in particular?"

Stella couldn't keep the smile off of the corners of her mouth. "So what if I am?"

Lindsay laughed. "It makes things so much harder," she responded. "What are we going to do?"

"The only thing we can," Stella answered. "We have to keep looking."

"I don't know if my feet can take much more of this," Lindsay said, falling into step beside her co-worker.

Stella scoffed. "What we endure for beauty. Which reminds me, who are you looking to impress?"

Lindsay blushed – and cursed her blush – trying to think up a lie quickly. "No one. You were the one that said I needed retail therapy, remember?"

"You were the one that said you needed a new dress," Stella shot back. "Why would you need a new dress when no one in the NYPD has seen you in a dress?"

"That's a lie," Lindsay quickly defended.

Stella raised an eyebrow, threading through the people. "Excuse me?"

"The subway surfer case? I came from the opera. Danny and Mac saw me in a dress."

Stella grinned. "So that's why Danny was a little shell shocked when he brought the stuff back to the lab."

"What?" Lindsay asked. "Are you serious?"

"I had to call his name three times before I got anything out of him."

Lindsay knit her brow. "Are we talking about the same Danny? The cocky New Yorker?"

Stella laughed. "The same one."

"There's no such thing as a shocked Danny," Lindsay replied with a shake of her head.

"I think you shocked him, Miss Monroe."

Lindsay blushed, remembering Danny saying exactly the same thing.

"You guys have been getting cozy, haven't you?"

Lindsay rolled her eyes. "Stella, you've been on this forever! Give it…" She stopped dead, her gaze locked inside a store on a dress. The mannequin modeled it beautifully and Lindsay was transfixed. It was blue, a shade between navy blue and royal blue and ended just past the mannequin's knees. It was cut low, though modestly so with thin straps. It was the design of the skirt that had caught her eye. Instead of a simple skirt, a layer of black netting fell over the satin fabric, the bottom embroidered with flowers, the only design on the entire dress.

It took Stella a few minutes before she realized Lindsay wasn't following. "Lindsay?" Retracing her steps, she saw Lindsay staring into the store. Stella moved to stand beside her co-worker, following her line of sight. She smiled. "You going to try it on?"

"Yeah," Lindsay said absently, finally getting her feet under her and stepping into the store. It didn't take them long to find and pick out Lindsay's size.

Stella grinned widely when Lindsay stepped out of the dressing room. "I knew we'd find you something."

"It can't just be something," Lindsay murmured, more to herself, spinning in front of the mirror and checking to make sure it fell right. "I'm going to need new shoes."

Stella almost squealed in happiness as a grin blossomed across Lindsay's face. "Shoes it is. Change so we can go."

A couple of stores later, it was Stella's turn to stop dead, but unlike Lindsay she didn't stand and admire. Instead, she strode right in, hunting down a sales woman and requesting the dress be found in her size.

Lindsay didn't hesitate in grinning when Stella stepped out of the change room. The dress was completely strapless, showing of Stella's shoulders. However, it was the skirt that she knew had sold the dress for Stella. It wasn't full by any means, but looked almost shredded, showing more leg than Lindsay would ever feel she could pull off. "Stel, you're gorgeous."

Stella nodded her head once resolutely, grinning from ear to ear. "Shoes?"

Lindsay resisted the urge to groan. "I don't know if I can handle that."

Stella laughed. "You don't have a choice. You already said you needed new shoes and I'm going to need better ones if I'm going to carry off this dress."

"Don't be ridiculous, Stella!" Lindsay exclaimed. "It won't matter what you wear on your feet."

"Ha! Shoes make the outfit, my dear. Let's go."

* * *

Lindsay sighed heavily as she plopped down on her couch. It had taken them the better part of six hours to complete their shopping and Lindsay knew she probably had a whole lot she wasn't going to ever need. However, her spirits were considerably higher than they had been All she wanted was a relaxing bath and then to collapse into bed.

Her phone had other ideas. "Monroe."

"How was your day?"

She almost slapped herself at the smile that turned up the corners of her mouth and the way she instantly recognized his voice. "Is it enough to say Stella knows how to shop?"

Danny chuckled on the other end of the phone. "You had a good time?"

She thought about it, how she and Stella had laughed and talked – though she'd resolutely avoided the topic of relationships – shopped and spent the afternoon thinking of anything but work. "I did. It was almost as good as my sick day."

"And what did you get?"

She laughed. "We don't have to talk about this, Danny. You're not interested in fashion."

"But I am interested in you," he responded smoothly and she could almost see the soft smile he was inevitably sporting.

Sometimes it scared her how easily he slid out of his tough-guy Danny and into the sweetheart he was when he was only around her. He was a chameleon and she knew that, but it still kind of scared her how easily he switched between the two.

"What did you buy?"

"My dress for tomorrow," she revealed finally, sinking further back into her couch cushions. She only hoped she could get up again when she finished on the phone.

"Really…" He sounded much more interested now.

Lindsay giggled. "Yes, really. You'll see it tomorrow."

He groaned. "Not even a hint?"

"Not a chance, Messer. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a date with my bathtub."

"You're a tease."

Lindsay rolled her eyes. "Good night."

* * *

_**Okay, I'm officially upset with this alerts thing, and I mean genuinely ticked. I'm pretty sure its part of the reason I'm not motivated… I'm not getting PM's because of the alert failure, which means that I'm less inclined to reply to reviews since people can't reply back (I have been anyway). **_

_**Nevertheless, you guys have still been pretty good with the reviewing. I'm pretty sure it'll skyrocket when the alerts come back because people haven't been notified that I've added. I hate this. I hate this a lot.**_


	31. New Years Eve Gala

**Chapter 31 – New Year's Eve, December 31, 2006 **

She'd cleaned her apartment to sparkling while she waited. She was anxious and nervous because Danny had managed to convince her to arrive with him. They hadn't been necessarily hiding their relationship, but they definitely didn't advertise it at work. This would be the first time they did anything in the public eye of the lab.

There were thoughts that hadn't surfaced in any of their discussions. She was damaged, and she'd proven that on a number of occasions. There was a million other people that would kill for her position and she truly felt – in that stupid insecure part of her brain – that she would give it up in an instant. He deserved better.

But he'd chosen her.

She was roused from her musings by the pounding on her door. "Coming," she called, slipping on her heels. She pulled open the door and had to force herself to remember to breathe. He looked fantastic in a suit, but Danny Messer in a tux was bone melting. It should be illegal.

"Hey," she finally managed, pulling the door open all the way and letting him in.

He was completely speechless. She was gorgeous, from the careful curls on her head to the strappy black heels on her feet. He went from head to toe and then back again, making sure to take in all aspects of her front before taking her hand and spinning her to get the whole view of the dress.

He still didn't say anything and Lindsay was getting anxious. "Danny?"

He knew he wouldn't be convey exactly what was spinning quickly through his head so he pulled her close, hands on her hips and sealing his lips to hers. He hoped his kiss conveyed everything he was feeling, the utter awe at how beautiful she was. "Do we really have to go?"

She blushed bright red. "I promised Stella I'd show off my dress and my date."

Danny's eyebrows rose. "You told her?"

"No. She's been guessing."

Danny chuckled, holding out an arm for her to link hers through. "Whenever you're ready Miss Monroe, we have a party to attend."

Lindsay giggled as she grabbed her coat and linked her arm through Danny's making sure to lock up as she left.

* * *

The ball was in full swing when she and Danny stepped into the tastefully decorated ballroom. Danny, the taller of the two, started searching over heads, but it was Lindsay that caught sight of Flack's black head. She tugged his arm in that direction, eventually able to make out Stella, Mac and Hawkes.

"Lindsay!" Stella exclaimed, pulling the younger woman into a happy hug. "Where is your date?"

Lindsay smiled secretively, deliberately not shooting Danny a glance. "Around."

"I _have_ to meet him."

"You're like a dog with a bone, Stel, leave the poor woman alone," Danny stepped in, also handing Lindsay a glass of champagne he'd snatched from a nearby waiter.

Lindsay thanked him softly before engaging Flack in conversation

* * *

Danny caught up to Lindsay ten minutes before midnight, snatching her away from a dance with Adam to pull her into one with him.

"You couldn't wait until the song finished? He's been waiting all night," she admonished playfully, wasting no time in wrapping her arms around his neck and closing the space between them.

"Couldn't wait. Two minutes until the new year."

She grinned. "And you have a New Year's Resolution that couldn't wait three minutes to tell me?"

"My resolutions have everythin' to do with you, Montana, so I won't be tellin' you a thing."

"But if they're all about me, that's not fair," she said with a pout.

"You keep that up and everyone's gonna know this is a real thing," he growled at her, his hands spreading out just north of her skirt seam.

"So then what about midnight? Are you just going to stand there?"

Suddenly, the music was cut off and the chief started the thirty second count down.

"We're about see, won't we."

5…

She prepared herself for the inevitable heat that swamped her body when his lips connected with hers and for the light-headed feeling that also inevitably followed.

4…

He'd already decided that he didn't care if their kiss proclaimed to the world they were together. He'd kiss her whatever way he damned well pleased!

3…

Her wrists were crossed behind his neck, subconsciously pulling him closer as the new year drew nearer. She could already feel his breath fanning across her face and her eyes started to flutter closed.

2…

The room disappeared around them as they waited for the end of the count down.

1….

* * *

_**Don't kill me!!!**_

_**I divided this into 2, New Year's Eve and New Year's. Be patient while I sleep for 8 hours and I'll post January 1st, I promise. **_

_**This will be the end of this particular story. I am planning a sequel, because I adore writing these characters, and, for those that followed Jackson I'm planning a rewrite of that so it makes more sense, but as I've said before, I have to get Wicked out of my system first.**_

_**Either that or some darn good DL SOON! And my alerts back, but we all already know how bitter I am about that one.**_


	32. Showing the Lab

**Chapter 32 – New Year's Day, January 1, 2007 **

"Happy New Year," he whispered to her, each word felt against her lips, before he kissed her.

Cheers rose around them and though Lindsay could feel the sound vibrating through her ears, she couldn't hear it over the rushing of blood in her brain. He was kissing her thoroughly, nothing just friendly about it. Part of her was apprehensive about how every one would take their relationship, but that part had been ruthlessly shoved aside for the part that enjoyed Danny's mouth on hers.

It took Adam "accidentally" running into them to stop the kiss. He continued to gaze down at her as they moved to Auld Lang Syne now playing through the speakers around the room, grinning from ear to ear. Once the song ended, they made their way back to the table they shared with their co-workers. Stella was grinning like Danny and Flack looked a little disgruntled. Lindsay knit her brow in confusion.

"Flack? What's wrong?"

"You guys couldn't have gotten together a week earlier could you? It had to be tonight."

She knew she was blushing, could feel the heat rising in her cheeks.

"You guys bet on us?" Danny asked, though he felt he should have known better.

"Stel won," Adam defended immediately, pointing an accusing finger at the curly-haired woman.

Danny and Lindsay exchanged a glance. "Well, I don't know if I'd say tonight made it official," Lindsay said coyly.

The looks that passed around the table were telling of their anxiousness. "When?" Hawkes finally asked curiously.

Danny looked down at the brunette that had crept closer to his side, wrapping his arm around her snugly. "Eh… two weeks?"

"Sounds right," she agreed with a serious nod.

Stella's face dropped.

Flack looked up hopefully. "Do you have an exact date?"

"Its before Christmas Day, I win," Adam said happily.

"Two weeks is the eighteenth," Hawkes spoke up. "Was there anyone that had the eighteenth exactly."

"They really went all out with this," Danny whispered in Lindsay's ear.

She shivered at the feeling of his breath. "I'm feeling slightly embarrassed."

"We've been waiting forever for this to happen," Flack responded petulantly, having overheard Lindsay's comment.

Meanwhile, Stella was flipping through her date book where apparently she'd jotted down the days everyone had placed their bets on. When she reached the week of the eighteenth she paused, shock registering on her face.

"Who is it, Stel?" Adam asked, almost jumping on the balls of his feet.

Stella glanced up and around the room, her eyes alighting on the team from the morgue. "Sid."

"What?" Hawkes, Flack, Adam and even Danny and Lindsay said together.

"Sid guessed the eighteenth and the week of," Stella repeated in disbelief.

Danny and Lindsay cracked up laughing at the depressed look on their colleagues' faces. She scooped up the money Stella had sitting in front of her and tugged Danny along with her over to Sid.

"Detectives," he greeting them happily. "Happy New Year." He stood to kiss Lindsay gently on the cheek.

"Happy New Year to you too," Lindsay replied with a smile. "This belongs to you."

He looked confused. "For what?"

Both Lindsay and Danny grinned as he wrapped his arms around her waist from behind, his head resting along side hers. "You guessed right."

A grin spread across Sid's face. "It's about time."

They laughed as they stepped away. Danny led her into the lobby, pulling her close once they were in a corner, out of sight of the ballroom. "I have a feeling I'm going to like this year," he said, smoothing her hair away from her face.

She grinned, pushing herself up to meet his mouth. "Me too."

* * *

_**Sorry, had to throw in the bet there. **_

_**So this is done… technically. I'm rethinking the way I'm going to do the sequel and if I'll just post the chapters in here instead. This is my first story that's gathered almost 300 (or 300+? I don't know anymore) reviews and I'm tempted to keep it going and seeing how it'll fare. I have some really sweet ideas but I won't be posting every day like I have been. I'll date them, but they won't be daily. **_

_**I'll leave it up to you guys. Let me know if you want a sequel or if I should just post chapters here. **_

_**I know some readers were looking for mature content and I can still write a few of those and let you know they're in the same arc if the decision is to continue this story as it's going. Let me know!!!**_


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